Governor vetoes Medicaid expansion bill despite Kansas GOP legislators’ support

Gov. Sam Brownback of Kansas vetoed a bill on Thursday that would have expanded Medicaid in his state, setting up a potential showdown next week with a Legislature that, while heavily Republican, has come to favor extending the largely free health coverage to as many as 180,000 additional poor adults.

Supporters would need to muster three additional votes in the House and two in the Senate to override the veto by Brownback, a conservative Republican.

Republican lawmakers in Kansas were initially solidly opposed to expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. But many softened their positions over the last year or so, particularly influenced by the financial struggles of the state’s small rural hospitals.

Momentum grew after several Democrats and moderate Republicans picked up legislative seats in the elections last fall, although the leaders of both legislative chambers remain opposed to any expansion.

The expansion effort comes in the midst of a budget crisis that has roiled Kansas for years.

Passage of the Medicaid bill was another sign of revolt against Brownback, whose tax-cutting regimen led to years of missed revenue forecasts and budget cuts. Last month, House lawmakers voted to override Brownback’s veto of a bill that would have raised taxes, but the Senate upheld the veto.

In emotional debate on Thursday, less than a week after President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress pulled legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Kansas House members who support Medicaid expansion framed the issue as a moral imperative that could save lives and stave off hospital closings in beleaguered towns.

“The lack of compassion toward this issue just blows my mind,” Rep. Larry Hibbard, a Republican, said.