Column: Medicaid Discussions Ongoing - Rep. Marcus McEntire

Medicaid expansion continues to be a much talked about topic among Oklahomans. Meetings on this issue are occurring on a frequent basis with discussions focusing on how Oklahoma might pay for an expansion to include adults who are below 138% of the federal poverty limit. Gov. Stitt is working with the Legislature on this issue, and I hope to have something definitive to announce to you in the near future.
My legislation on surprise medical billing, meanwhile, should be filed shortly. I’ve worked hard on this issue for two years. It is gratifying to be closer to a solution that holds insurance enrollees harmless to surprise medical bills they might receive after receiving care they thought was offered by a provider covered by their policy. My goal is to make the practice of surprise medical billing illegal in Oklahoma. I appreciate the health care providers and health insurance companies that came to the table to negotiate in good faith regarding this issue. Providers deserve to be compensated for their services, and insurance companies should not be on the hook for paying for care they have not authorized, but the insured patient should not be caught in the middle. An insured has a right to know up front what they will be charged and what will be covered by insurance. They should never receive a surprise bill after treatment.
Also this past week, lawmakers received certified figures from the state Board of Equalization for how much money we will have to appropriate for the Fiscal Year 2021 state budget. The board said we will have $85.5 million, or 1%, less than we appropriated for FY2020.
With declining oil and gas prices and personal income, sales and use taxes slightly lower than anticipated, we knew this would be a flat budget year when compared to last. But, it’s important to remember that FY2020 was a record high budget, so flat is still really good.
We will still be able to take care of core needs – education, health care, transportation, public safety and more – and we don’t anticipate any cuts.
In the meantime, if I can be of any assistance, please feel free to contact me at marcus.mcentire@okhouse.gov or (405) 557-7327.