State Question 802 will be on the Primary Ballot on June 30. If passed, it will amend the Oklahoma State Constitution. It will expand Medicaid to include able-bodied people between 18 and 65 whose annual income is 133% below the poverty line ($17,236 for a single adult and $35,535 for a family of 4 in 2019.)

Sooner Care, Oklahoma’s present Medicaid program, provides health care to children under 19, adults with children 18 and under, pregnant women, and those older than 65 or the blind or disabled.

Proponents of Medicaid’s expansion to thousands of able-bodied adults claim it will lower costs for all Oklahomans, but in recent studies in California, Colorado, and Arizona, it failed to reduce hospital costs or insurance premiums and had little effect on health outcomes. Medicaid expansion in other states has cost tax payers 157% more than projected, according to the Foundation for Government Accountability.

States must pay their 10% of Medicaid while federal dollars pay 90%. If Oklahoma expanded Medicaid to all 628,000 potential able-bodied enrollees, taxpayers could expect higher taxes to pay for nearly $375 million annually. These figures are based on pre-Covid-19 estimates. No doubt, many more able-bodied people will qualify. With a budget shortfall likely next year, Oklahoma would have to cut services and raise taxes. ☹

Since State Question 802 is a Constitutional Amendment, it can only be changed by another Constitutional Amendment. The state must pay their 10%, regardless of the amount, and cannot make any changes which would make it more difficult for the able-bodied between 18 and 65 to qualify.

802 is a bad deal for Oklahoma. It is not necessary for the healthy, able-bodied who are not children to have Medicaid.