On a tie vote, the Senate Appropriations Committee has rejected a compromise proposal that would have funded Medicaid expansion on a smaller scale. The effort, led by Springfield Republican Lincoln Hough, would have designated 60-million dollars in state funding to the expansion. Republican Governor Parson requested more than 100-million dollars and the House chose not to fund the expansion.
Republicans Mike Cierpiot of Lee’s Summit and Justin Brown of Rolla joined Hough in voting with the four Democrats on the committee in support of the compromise that was ultimately defeated. The 34-billion dollar state budget proposal is expected to hit the Senate floor next week.
