Did coverage give rise to addiction?

Gov. John Kasich vetoed the Medicaid-expansion freeze that would slow the rate of growth as a matter of sensible fiscal control. Kasich blames opioid addiction to justify his veto favoring unfettered spending, but a closer look shows that the governor may have made a huge miscalculation where opioids are concerned.

Kasich’s Medicaid expansion was held up in court until 2014,when he implemented it unilaterally. That’s when thousands of working-age adults making 138 percent of poverty level with no disabilities or children became eligible for Medicaid, including prescriptions. Drug overdoses in Ohio exploded in 2014 over 2013 from 84 to 503 and then 1,155 cases in 2015, and still rising. Is there a relationship between the opioids-use explosion and free access to prescription opioids from Obamacare expansion?

Ohio Republican House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger and Republican Senate President Larry Obhof, along with other Republican leaders, allowed Kasich to veto the people’s representatives, giving us the expansion. The leadership of the Republican Party has a historic opportunity to regain the respect and dignity state Representatives have squandered supporting Kasich’s shenanigans.

Legislators should override virtually all of Kasich’s vetoes with a clean sweep. They should reaffirm their authority and spare none. They should do the right thing and fire a shot that will be heard around the world, including Washington, D.C.

Ohio can make history by striking all of the governor’s vetoes of this budget. Bring statesmanship back to Ohio.

Bob Connors Bridgeport