Great news: health care for 35,000 parents at no new cost to the state

Fabulous news:

On Monday, [Governor Nixon] appeared in several cities across the state to announce what he says is a landmark agreement that will bring health care to nearly 35,000 parents at no increased cost to the public.

Under the plan, the Missouri Hospital Association will contribute $52.5 million yearly to provide health care to eligible parents in the state. The money will come from funds that Hospital Association members receive for uncompensated care for uninsured patients. The state would then take the association's contributions to draw down roughly $93 million in federal matching funds for health care.

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Under Nixon's new approach, Missouri parents would qualify if the family income is up to 50 percent of the poverty level - or roughly $11,025 for a family of four.

With hospitals on board, the only potential stumbling block is the General Assembly. It wouldn't have to spend any tax dollars, as Nixon notes, but would have to raise the income guidelines to allow more parents to qualify.

The hospitals are volunteering to participate because it will save them money.  As a spokesman for the Missouri Hospital Association said yesterday, "It is perfectly in line with [the Association's] agenda to expand coverage." Today, the head of the Missouri Hospital Association said the plan is "an opportunity we can't afford to miss. Everyday we see the consequences of people who have no health insurance. They are either getting it here (at People's) or in the hospital emergency room, which is an expensive place" for routine health care.

That said, we probably shouldn't underestimate the GOP legislature's ability to foul this up -- Speaker Ron Richard said yesterday that the Republican caucus is "pretty firm (against) the expansion." Why? Who knows. Maybe they're so accustomed to sticking it to families that they can't wrap their heads around a win-win-win situation.