John Bohlinger on Health Care

Strong advocate of a single-payer system like Medicare

"We know that the Affordable Care Act has met with a great deal of resistance in Montana," he said, carefully. "People are disappointed that it hasn't been able to deliver what was promised. We know that--oh, gosh, more than 30,000 Montanans have had their insurance policies canceled."

"It's 38,000 now," interjected Bohlinger's strategist.

"And the new insurance is more expensive than the old insurance," said the candidate. "It hasn't worked. We're strong advocates of a single-payer system. Medicare works for me." Bohlinger went on, talking about how Montana had invested in hospitals for state employees, and how one of them had outfitted him with a titanium hip. "My out-of-pocket cost was $300."

Expand Medicaid to cover 70,000 low-income Montanans

Yet the Democratic governor expressed no enthusiasm for the idea. Bullock, who proposed expanding Medicaid this year, has said that he sees no point in calling a special session, because the Republican majority in the Legislature is likely to reject it again.

Bohlinger said the issue of Medicaid expansion is too important to wait until 2015. Thousands of low-income Montanans are unable to get health-care coverage that will be required next year, either because they've had difficult using the new online ObamaCare marketplace or because they're too poor to get any assistance, he said.

Ensure healthcare for uninsured children

Bohlinger Indicates support of the following principles regarding health issues.
• Provide tax incentives to small businesses that provide health care to their employees.
• Ensure that citizens have access to basic health care, through managed care, insurance reforms, or state funded care where necessary.
• Provide health care to uninsured children by designing a children's health insurance program.
• Use state funds to continue some Medicaid coverage for legal immigrants.
• Limit the amount of damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits.
• Provide publicly-funded mental health services to eligible Medicaid recipients.
• Support the Montana Medical Assistance Facilities program that provides additional support to rural hospitals.
• Q: Do you support Montana's current managed-care mental health services to the poor?
• A: Yes.