Gov. Pawlenty holds out hand for Medicaid cash
Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty in a letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius indicated the state would accept some $262 million in Medicaid cash — cash stemming from recent federal economic stimulus legislation.
In the letter, Pawlenty explained his recent executive order to state agencies not to apply for federal health care funding unless obligated by law.
“This approach is partly fueled by a concern about overspending by the federal government and the unbearable burdens that spending will place on our economy and hard-working taxpayers now and in the future,” wrote the governor to the secretary.
Pawlenty, viewed as a potential presidential candidate, has received national media attention stemming from his executive order.
One pot of potential federal funding, about a $1 million slated for studying the impact of health care exchanges that Pawlenty brushed aside, apparently will stay in Washington.
Human Services Commissioner Cal Ludeman explained to lawmakers this morning during a hearing that the parameters of this and other federal health care funding are poorly thought out or absent.
House Majority Leader Tony Sertich, DFL-Chisholm, indicating that Minnesota sends more tax dollars to Washington than it gets back, was unimpressed with Ludeman’s argument.
“We should just get our money back,” he said.
