(Bloomberg View) — We had more significant hints last week that the Medicaid expansion under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) – Obamacare – will eventually be universal.
First, Democrat John Bel Edwards appears to be the solid favorite to defeat Republican David Vitter in a special election for governor of Louisiana on Nov. 21. Edwards favors Medicaid expansion.
Second, incoming Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, a Tea Party stalwart who ran against Obamacare, is talking about negotiating a deal with the federal government over changing Medicaid expansion, rather than simply ending it.
See also: New Kentucky governor faces reality of dumping PPACA exchange
And a surprising one: Alabama, with a solidly Republican state government, is reportedly reconsidering its opposition to the expansion.
None of these results are certain yet. But they follow the general pattern. States with Democrats in charge accept the program. States with Republicans in charge have mixed records of adopting it. But once a state goes along with Medicaid expansion, it doesn’t go back on it even if a strongly conservative Republican is elected governor.