Bozeman debate shows sides for tobacco tax, I-185
In nine months, the coverage that tethers 96,000 Montanans to health care runs out. Instead of waiting to see whether lawmakers align to keep the state’s Medicaid expansion alive, some groups are looking to voters.
Initiative 185 would create a tobacco tax, do away with the expansion’s expiration date and help send money to health programs.
In a debate at the Bozeman Public Library on Wednesday night, advocates called the plan a way to narrow tobacco use and take the question out of the future of Medicaid expansion. Opponents called I-185 a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
Lawmakers created the state’s expansion to cover people making too much to qualify for Medicaid and too little to afford health insurance. It went into place in 2016 with a June 30, 2019, sunset.
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