Nineteen states continue to resist Medicaid expansion, one of the key components of the ACA. The expansion was mandatory until the Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that states could opt out.
Pundits immediately predicted -- and continue to predict -- that every state would ultimately cooperate. The federal government would pay for 90 to 100 percent of the expansion, allowing state leaders to claim credit for helping their residents while mostly relying on federal money. Hospitals would aggressively push for the expansion, allowing them to receive compensation for treating people who otherwise would never pay.
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