Medicaid petition meets goal, backers say

Supporters of Medicaid expansion say they have collected the required number of signatures to put a state question on the ballot next year.

Nearly two weeks shy of the Oct. 28 deadline, the Yes on 802 campaign has collected the 178,000 signatures required by state law, campaign manager Amber England announced Thursday evening on a conference call for the campaign's volunteers.

But signature-gatherers will continue collecting circulating petitions until closer to the deadline, she said.

“We can't afford to just squeak by,” she said. “We need to deliver a message that will resonate across the state later this month when we turn in these signatures.”

England hinted the additional signatures will help serve as a buffer should someone challenge the petitions after they are turned into the Secretary of State's office.

After the secretary of state's office counts and verifies the signatures, there is a 10-day challenge period during which someone can object to the petitions.

“Our goal has never been to turn in the bare number of signatures needed to make the ballot ,” England told supporters “We know t hat opponents are going to do everything in their power to prevent Oklahomans from getting the chance to vote on this. We're just not going to let that happen.”

The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs challenged the initiative petition in May after it was filed.

In a recent interview, the president of the conservative think tank did not indicate if OCPA will challenge the petitions once they are turned in. But OCPA President Jonathan Small said he's confidant the potential state question will face an opposition campaign soon.

"There will obviously be significant opposition once it gets to the campaign stage," he said.

The proposed state question would amend Oklahoma's constitution to expand Medicaid“to certain lowincome adults between the ages of 18 and 65 whose income does not exceed 133% of the federal poverty level.”

The Yes on 802 campaign must turn in petitions by 5 p.m. Oct. 28.

Disability advocate Erin Taylor and other volunteers prepare this summer to collect signatures for the petition to put Medicaid expansion to a vote of the people during a kickoff drive for Yes on 802 in Oklahoma City. [NATE BILLINGS/ THE OKLAHOMAN]