DENVER (AP) — Gov. John Hickenlooper on Thursday dismissed a Republican idea to explore waivers from Medicaid spending to alleviate budget pressures, saying it's a requirement Colorado can't get out of.

Medicaid will account for nearly 82 percent of the increase in the state's general fund spending, as cuts to education and public colleges continue next year. Republicans have suggested that the state should explore the possibility of getting waivers from the fedral government that will allow Colorado to spend less on Medicaid.

Rep. Cheri Gerou, the chair of the Joint Budget Committee, brought up the issue again while the Democratic governor talked to lawmakers about his proposed budget, which he unveiled earlier this month.

Continue Reading for Free

Register and gain access to:

  • Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.