How Much Will ObamaCare Really Cost MD
The Maryland Public Policy Institute's Marc Kilmer provides an analysis of the full costs of ObamaCare in yesterday's Baltimore Sun:
Tucked into the newly enacted federal health care legislation is a mandate that states expand Medicaid, which will cost Maryland hundreds of millions of dollars. But Gov. Martin O'Malley declared in a recent speech that this bill will actually save the state money. Considering that in the same speech, he also bragged about the state's health care programs - without noting their significant problems - perhaps his judgment isn't all that reliable. Just as the state's 2008 Medicaid expansion (championed by Mr. O'Malley) has been a burden on the state's budget, so too will be this health care legislation.
In hailing the passage of federal health care legislation, Governor O'Malley claimed it "will build on our progress" in Maryland. Of course, he defines "progress" in terms of legislation he has championed. Two of the initiatives he mentioned - Medicaid expansion and a health insurance partnership with small businesses - are good examples of why government should not be in the health care business.
The governor commended an expansion of the state's Medicaid program. Yes, more people are now enrolled in the state's medical care program than when Governor O'Malley entered office. That is in large part why the governor requested $6.2 billion in this year's budget for a program that cost $4.8 billion in 2007, a 29 percent increase in four years.
The Medicaid expansion specifically championed by Governor O'Malley was already exceeding cost estimates by the end of its first year. The cost for all of the state's medical care programs has been higher (usually far higher) than the amount budgeted for them in every year of Governor O'Malley's term. This runaway spending is directly contributing to the state's current budget woes.
To read the full commentary on the Baltimore Sun Opinion website, click here.