2017 Governor's State of the State speeches: on Health Care

John Bel Edwards: Medicaid expansion reduced uninsured by 43% & saved $200M

• Nearly 417,000 individuals have received health coverage through Medicaid expansion.
• More than 77,000 individuals have received preventive care services since coverage began July 1, many seeing doctors for the first time in years.
• Louisiana's uninsured rate has dropped from 22 percent in 2013 to below 12.6 percent--a nearly 43 percent drop in the uninsured rate. It is one of the greatest drops in uninsured rates in the entire country.
• In the process of doing all of this, Louisiana is projected to save nearly $200 million in the first year alone, and we're projected to save more than $300 million in the next fiscal year.

John Kasich: Medicaid expansion brought health care to 700,000 people

Chris Sununu: Push for a true accounting of our Medicaid program

This budget requires the Commissioner of Health and Human Services to make quarterly reports, not just to me, but to Legislative leadership about where we actually stand on our true costs so we can become a more nimble government that is responsive not just reactive. As governor, I won't make people wait until after an election to discover we may have a shortfall. We have to be transparent. We have to be honest with the people and honest with ourselves.

Mark Dayton: Preserve successes like Medicaid expansion & MinnesotaCare

There are important features of the Affordable Care Act, which must be preserved. They include requiring health insurers to offer coverage to people with pre-existing medical conditions.

We must also protect the Medicaid expansion and MinnesotaCare that have provided lifelines for 300,000 Minnesotans, as well as many rural hospitals and clinics. And parents should remain able to cover their children under their policies until they reach age 26.

It is also essential to protect the quality of coverage Minnesotans have gained under the Affordable Care Act. ObamaCare now requires that insurance plans must include 10 essential health benefits: outpatient care, hospitalization, maternity, pediatric care, mental health, emergency, preventive, laboratory, and rehabilitative services, and prescriptions.

John Hickenlooper: Basic health care is a right, not a privilege

We all save money when people stay healthy or get treatment in doctor's offices instead of emergency rooms. We're emphasizing preventive care and giving people the tools to manage their diseases.

Asa Hutchinson: $5M for Mental Health Stabilization Centers

Sam Brownback: Refusing ObamaCare like declining a discount on the Titanic

Of the 23 state exchanges established under ObamaCare, a majority have failed, at a cost of billions including significant hits to state budgets. As major insurers abandon the few remaining state exchanges, the decision to refuse early adoption looks increasingly like declining a discount ticket on the Titanic.

The same holds true for the policy choice not to take the bait on Medicaid expansion. You've heard the promise--hundreds of thousands more beneficiaries at zero cost to the state--all paid for with 'free' federal money. It would be foolish to endorse the ObamaCare expansion of Medicaid now--akin to airlifting on to the Titanic. Kansas was right. Kansas should stay the course.

Terry Branstad: Transform mental health system to community-based model

As a result, we have created a new system where more Iowans have access to mental health services closer to home than ever before; more Iowans are covered with health insurance than ever before; and more than 80 new value-added services are now being offered under our modernized Medicaid program.

We've also replaced the old Medicaid system with a coordinated team of health-care professionals to ensure patients see the right provider at the right time. As a result of these reforms and innovation, we have improved the focus on health outcomes and saved the taxpayers $110 million.