State Senate budget leaders laid out the case against Medicaid expansion Expanding the state’s Medicaid program would be a band-aid on the larger healthcare access problem and ... Keep Reading
Economics
Why ‘pre-recession’ spending levels make for a dangerous goal
Progressives urge state budget writers to return NC to ‘pre-recession’ budget levels That represents, however, a decades-long high-water mark of unsustainable spending ... Keep Reading
Budget proposals add to cost of teacher benefits
House and Senate budget proposals stoke the endless debate over teacher pay Current discussion over teacher pay continues to focus on salary and largely ignore benefits. The ... Keep Reading
NC doctors lack capacity to accommodate Medicaid expansion
83 Percent of NC doctors are at full capacity or already overextended 79 NC counties are designated as “primary health professional shortage areas” Medicaid expansion would ... Keep Reading
Medicaid: A playground for scammers and fraud
10 percent of Medicaid payments are lost to fraud or incompetence Medicaid expansion will likely exacerbate fraud in the program Taxpayers should be leery of ... Keep Reading
State budget proposals on the right track; some improvements possible
Both the House and Senate have now released their budget plans There are many similarities, and both plans have strengths and weaknesses A potential Cooper veto could make ... Keep Reading
Why the NC Justice Center’s budget demands are so dangerous
The NC Justice Center recently declared that the N.C. House budget proposal “falls short of N.C.’s needs” But no amount of spending will ever satisfy the Justice Center Their ... Keep Reading
Cost of expanding Medicaid: more than meets the eye
Expanding the state’s Medicaid program is not “free” to NC taxpayers. In addition to the direct costs of expansion, we must also account for the opportunity cost. Growing ... Keep Reading
A state Earned Income Tax Credit: The idea that won’t die
Since its elimination at the end of 2013, North Carolina progressives have endlessly advocated to bring back a state version of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). North ... Keep Reading
The myth of uncompensated care savings in Medicaid expansion
63 percent of potential newly eligibles under Medicaid expansion in NC already have private insurance Shifting people from private insurance to Medicaid drives up insurance ... Keep Reading
