Legislative leaders announced Thursday a deal on Medicaid expansion after a decade of debate. The compromise will allow North Carolina to provide health insurance for more than 500,000 of the state’s poorest residents at no cost to the state.

The deal also includes much-needed reforms to the state’s Certificate of Need (CON) laws, which currently prohibit competition for many of the state’s big hospitals. These reforms will mean more outpatient surgery centers and MRI facilities and should lead to lower costs for the State Health Plan. SEANC has been a big supporter of CON reform since 2011 as a participant in a coalition of organizations, including Emerge Ortho and Ortho Carolina, along with consultants Connie Wilson and David French. This is a victory for State Health Plan members and North Carolinians.

The federal government will also pay the state $1.8 billion if Medicaid is expanded, which hopefully will offset other parts of the budget to free up more funds for investment in state services, including pay raises, retention bonuses, and cost-of-living adjustments for retirees.

The bill to remove state employees' right to have their association dues and other payments deducted from their paychecks (Senate Bill 87) remains in the Senate Rules Committee and has yet to be calendared.