LITTLE ROCK — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Halter said Monday he favors the expansion of the state’s Medicaid program proposed by Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe and authorized under the federal health-care law enacted in 2010.
The proposed expansion would give an additional250,000 poor Arkansans access to Medicaid services. The federal government would cover 100 percent of the cost for the first few years, with the state’s share gradually increasing to 10 percent by 2020.
Halter of North Little Rock, who was elected as lieutenant governor in 2006 and lost a primary challenge to former U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln in a 2010 runoff, said it doesn’t make sense for Arkansas not to accept these federal dollars.
“The idea that we would not access an expansion paid for by federal funds seems ... very short-sighted,” he said an interview Monday.
Halter said he hopes the Beebe administration and Republican legislative leaders will work out a path to Medicaid expansion in Arkansas.
Arkansans and healthcare providers will lose if Republican legislative leaders and Beebe are unable to negotiate some sort of deal, he added.
Republican legislative leaders have generally been cool to Beebe’s proposed Medicaid expansion; they have asked Beebe to explore a partial expansion of the Medicaid program that would cover fewer people and cost less money. Beebe said last month that he will ask the federal government to let Arkansas tailor a potential Medicaid expansion to meet the state’s needs.
The federal Department of Health and Human Services said in December that states may choose to do a partial Medicaid expansion, but that they wouldn’t get the three years of 100 percent federal funding provided under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Last month, Halter, 52, announced he would run for governor in 2014 elections on the same day that Democratic Attorney General Dustin McDaniel announced he was ending his gubernatorial campaign.
McDaniel withdrew several weeks after he disclosed that he had had an “inappropriate” relationship with Hot Springs attorney Andrea Davis, who has faced off against McDaniel’s office in several cases.
In 2006, Halter challenged Beebe for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination for nearly three months before switching races and running for lieutenant governor.
As lieutenant governor, he led a successful campaign in favor of a proposed constitutional amendment in 2008 to authorize a state lottery for college scholarships. The lottery has raised more than $300 million for college scholarships.
Halter said he will propose plans to improve education, job opportunities and health care as part of his gubernatorial campaign.
He declined to take a stance on legislation that would ban abortions as early as the sixth week of conception.
“I believe that we should do everything we can do to reduce the number of abortions while maintaining the constitutional right of women to make this decision, so that’s the broad brush that I come from. But I’m going to leave until later discussing the specific details of the legislation,” Halter said.
Halter declined to say how much he intends to raise for his campaign, but he said he’s gratified by the response to his campaign so far.
Although McDaniel is out of the race, other Democrats are expressing interest.
State Highway Commissioner John Burkhalter of Little Rock and Senate Democratic leader Keith Ingram of West Memphis have said they are considering running for the Democratic nomination for governor.
Former U.S. Rep. Mike Ross of Prescott, who ruled out a run for governor in May, has been quiet since McDaniel dropped out. In a January interview with the Democrat-Gazette before McDaniel’s departure from the race, Ross said he has no plans to run for governor, but “you never say never.”
Former U.S. Rep. Asa Hutchinson of Rogers is the only announced Republican candidate for governor. Lt. Gov. Mark Darr of Springdale, state Sen. Johnny Key of Mountain Home and businessman Curtis Coleman of Little Rock have said they are considering running for the Republican nomination for governor.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 02/05/2013