GOP legislators vote to fund Stitt's Medicaid plan

With the vote on a state question to expand Medicaid looming, Oklahoma' s GOP-controlled Legislature passed legislation to fund Gov. Kevin Stitt's Medicaid expansion plan.

Republicans in the House passed Friday a bill to increase a “bed tax” on some Oklahoma hospitals to bring in about $134 million to pay for most of the state's share of Medicaid expansion.

By a vote of 70-10, the House passed Senate Bill 1046 to raise the Supplemental Hospital Offset Payment Program (SHOPP) up to its ceiling of 4%.

Enacted in the 2011, the program assesses a fee on annual net patient revenue at 65 Oklahoma hospitals. The fee that is adjusted annually currently sits at 2.3%.

Oklahoma Hospital Association President Patti Davis said current economic conditions make it imperative to expand Medicaid as soon as possible.

“In an economic downturn and pandemic, hospitals are willing to pay the bulk of the state share to bring back over $1 billion annually in new federal funding to cover low income Oklahomans without raising taxes ," she said. "The OHA, on behalf of its member hospitals who will pay for the state share of SHOPP, were disappointed that certain safeguards were not included in exchange for this funding."

Democrats, who are supporting State Question 802, voted against the legislation. SQ 802, which will be on the June 30 primary ballot, asks voters to expand Medicaid.

Stitt's SoonerCare 2.0 plan seeks to impose work requirements and charge premiums for those lowincome Oklahomans who would be eligible for Medicaid benefits under the expansion.

A constitutional amendment, SQ 802 would expand Medicaid under the traditional platform with no caps, work requirements or premiums.

SQ 802 also would block the state from imposing restrictions that could make it more difficult for Oklahomans to qualify for expanded Medicaid coverage than it is to qualify forth estate' s current Medicaid program.

A second bill passed Friday authorizes the director of the Office of Management and Enterprise Services to transfer from state reserve accounts any additional funds necessary to fund the expansion that is anticipated to occur on

July 1. The state share of expansion is expected to cost $164 million for the upcoming fiscal year.

Earlier this week, Stitt said he hadn't seen the bills to fund his Medicaid expansion plan. For months, he has pushed to raise the SHOPP fee to pay for the expansion.

Neither funding mechanism applies if SQ 802 passes. Under the state question, the state would have to expand Medicaid by July 1, 2021.

Oklahoma is one of 14 states that has not yet expanded Medicaid.