Medicaid bill shot down in Virginia special session

[unhappycamper]

http://hamptonroads.com/2014/09/medicaid-bill-shot-down-virginia-special-session

Medicaid bill shot down in Virginia special session
By Bill Sizemore
The Virginian-Pilot
© September 19, 2014

RICHMOND

To no one’s surprise, the politically charged partisan divide over Medicaid expansion in Virginia remains intact after a special General Assembly session called to debate the issue one last time in 2014.

After a day-long debate Thursday, Republicans who dominate the House of Delegates shot down a compromise proposal from one of their own, Del. Tom Rust of Fairfax County, to extend coverage under the federal/state health insurance program to as many as 400,000 uninsured Virginians.

The vote to kill Rust’s bill (HB5008) was 64-33, a near-perfect party-line split. Rust drew just three Republican votes: his own; that of his co-patron, Del. Glenn Davis of Virginia Beach; and Del. James Edmunds of Halifax County. All the rest of the “yes” votes were from Democrats.

One Democrat, Del. Johnny Joannou of Portsmouth, voted with the majority Republicans against the measure.

[ladjf]

1. I have been over rating Virginians for years. They seem to be about as

politically crazy as the rest of the South. nt