Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) has made it clear in the past that when it comes to Medicaid expansion, his state will not be participating.
On Monday, Perry added some fire to that point, writing a letter requesting a federal waiver so Texas can freely reform its system under Obamacare. According to the Texas Tribune, Perry is asking the federal government for a block grant -- which would give Texas "the flexibility" to amplify four key areas: personal responsibility, reduced dependence on the government, lower program costs and improved coordination of health care.
“Seemingly, the president and his administration are content to simply throw money at a problem and hope that any problems will resolve themselves,” Perry wrote, according to the Tribune. "My response, and the response of the Texas Legislature, has been crystal clear: Texas will not expand Medicaid under Obamacare.”
Last spring, Perry went so far as to tie Medicaid expansion to one of America's lighter-hearted traditions. In an April 1 statement released in tandem with Sens. John Cornyn (R) and Ted Cruz (R), Perry called the law a "misguided, and ultimately doomed, attempt to mask the shortcomings of Obamcare." Appearing at the Texas state Capitol, Reuters reported that he compared the topic directly to April Fool's Day.
"Seems to me April Fool's Day is the perfect day to discuss something as foolish as Medicaid expansion, and to remind everyone that Texas will not be held hostage by the Obama administration's attempt to force us into the fool's errand of adding more than a million Texans to a broken system," Perry said.
Perry is not the only GOP governor immersed in drama over Medicaid expansion. Last week, a lawsuit was filed against Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R). Lawyers accused her and a bipartisan legislative coalition of violating the state's Constitution by passing the expansion without two-thirds approval from the state Legislature, the Arizona Republic reported.
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