Alaskans can forgive Gov. Bill Walker if he takes Speaker Mike Chenault's and Senate President Kevin Meyer's legislative manifesto over Medicaid expansion with a grain of salt.
Speaker Chenault called on Walker to, essentially, present a bill for ratification by the Legislature for what is otherwise an administrative responsibility to craft a working agreement between the state and the federal Department of Health and Human Services.
Chenault's demand might seem reasonable -- to someone who has been asleep for the last two years. The last election is still fresh in the Alaska memory. The favored candidate of Chenault and Meyer, Sean Parnell, lost that election to Walker.
Most Alaskans recall candidate Walker being unambiguous with Alaska's voters: Medicaid expansion would begin on "Day One" of his new administration.
Most Alaskans remember just as well that candidate Parnell and his minions tried to demagogue Walker's Medicaid expansion pledge by accusing him of supporting "Obamacare" and churlishly attacking Mr. Walker's motives and good faith.
Ironically, all of these attacks came as a report on Medicaid expansion that the Parnell camp tried to hide until after the election, was made public and largely supported candidate Walker.
That report documented the need for Medicaid expansion and it demonstrated that, over time, the expansion -- even under the 10 percent match required from the state after 2016 -- would save the state millions of dollars in costs. The state bore the cost of uncovered Alaskans through the spread of costs for services to its pool of workers and retirees. That's right. The state of Alaska ultimately pays for the ER services provided to uncovered Alaskans.
Under Medicaid expansion, largely paid for by the federal government, most of those added costs to the state would disappear.
So who was at the helm of candidate Parnell's anti-Medicaid expansion campaign and who helped to set the bitter and negative tone of those final days of the Parnell campaign against Mr. Walker? That was none other than Speaker Chenault's chief of staff, Tom Wright.
One can, therefore, forgive Gov. Walker if he is skeptical about the purity of Speaker Chenault's intentions regarding Medicaid expansion.
And who is the legislator on the Senate side carrying this issue on behalf of President Meyer? Sen. Pete Kelly of Fairbanks. Sen. Kelly is a great fan of ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization largely funded by the Koch Brothers. The organization (along with other public policy tentacles of the Koch octopus, such as Americans for Prosperity) is a strident voice against the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion. Sen. Kelly has voiced his opposition to Medicaid expansion and has hired former Parnell commissioner of Health and Social Services (and Medicaid expansion opponent), Bill Streuer as his point-person on the issue.
What then would a reasonable Alaskan conclude about the intentions of the legislative leadership in their demands for a separate piece of legislation authorizing Medicaid expansion?
It looks pretty much like a long walk on the mudflats at low tide to me.
It might be shocking for these minor league Machiavellis to learn this, but there are actual lives at stake in this debate. For all their professed piety, the Republican leadership is up to no good with their assault on Medicaid expansion.
I promise that they will feel the consequences of their actions on this issue. Most of their constituency knows someone whose life will be made better or worse by the actions the Republican leadership ultimately takes on this issue.
Given the low regard with which the Legislature is publicly held and the relatively high regard folks feel toward Gov. Walker, I could forgive the governor if he were tempted to take a page from Ronald Reagan and tell Sen. Kelly and the gang: "Deny Alaskans health care? Make my day."
But Gov. Walker would not do that because he wants Alaskans to get the medical coverage that he promised.
Legislators: it's way past time to do the right thing and quit playing politics with Alaskans' health care; get Medicaid expansion done!
Elstun Lauesen is a lifelong Alaskan, financial development consultant and former socio-economic officer with the state Pipeline Coordinator's Office.?
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary@alaskadispatch.com