OKLAHOMA CITY – As the state attempts to make cuts to avoid a $1.3 billion deficit, it seems thousands of Oklahomans will lose their health coverage.
House Bill 2665, authored by Rep. Doug Cox, would remove 111,000 Oklahomans from receiving Medicaid coverage.
The bill would eliminate Medicaid benefits for any “nonpregnant able-bodied adult under sixty-five years of age.”
“It was designed to help low-income children, low-income pregnant women, the blind and disabled and low-income aged people who need help caring for themselves,” Cox told the Oklahoman. “This bill does not affect a single one of those people.”
Organizers say the bill would save the state $130 million a year.
However, some critics told the Oklahoman that the bill would mainly affect 80,000 single mothers, who can’t work full-time because they can’t afford child care.
On Wednesday, the bill approved the Oklahoma House of Representatives 65-34. It will now head to the Senate for consideration.
Source: KFOR