During a debate between 2nd Congressional District candidates Shomari Figures and Caroleene Dobson, the candidates were asked how they would handle healthcare issues affecting Alabama.
Figures, a Democrat, supports Medicaid expansion and said there is “no excuse” why Alabama has not expanded the program.
Figures cited low health outcomes and the closure of four rural hospitals as evidence for the need for Medicaid expansion.
Figures also said that he would support a bill to open reimbursement incentives for Alabama to expand Medicaid.
“The thing that I would do day one is walk down the hall to Congresswoman Terri Sewell’s office to co-sponsor the Medicaid expansion bill,” Figures said, “to again open up the reimbursement period or reimbursement incentives rather for the state of Alabama to do what 40 plus others in America have already done, and that is expand health care here.
“Because if Medicaid had been expanded, that hospital in Union Springs would still be open. Thomasville would still be open. Grove Hill still open.”
Dobson, a Republican, said she will fight to fund rural hospitals and that the question of Medicaid expansion is best left up to the individual states.
Dobson stated that due to the rural health care crisis she encourages Gov. Kay Ivey and the legislature to “examine” Medicaid expansion.
Dobson went on to say that rising health care costs were due to inflation and private health insurance was the best for individuals.
“Part of the rising health care costs are directly attributable to inflation that has been caused by [the Biden-Harris administration’s] reckless government spending and crushing of American energy independence,” Dobson said. “We also have to recognize that the best insurance is the one that you get through your job. So, we need to create more jobs to allow people to have private insurance. They’re going to pay those reimbursed to keep our rural hospitals open.”
Ivey recently told AL.com that she was still concerned with Medicaid expansion because of the long-term costs.
Jane Adams, Government Relations Director for the American Cancer Society Action Network, said that Ivey’s statement was a “lie” because other Republican run states figured out how to pay for Medicaid expansion.
