Supporters of the Idaho Medicaid expansion ballot initiative plan to deliver thousands of petitions to Secretary of State Lawerence Denney in Boise Friday.
The deadline for gathering petition signatures was May 1. Since then, local county clerk offices around the state have been verifying that the signatures came from registered voters.
Now the petitions go to Denney’s office, which has 15 days to certify the initiative for the November ballot. To qualify, supporters had to collect at least 56,192 signatures overall, including signatures from 6 percent of registered voters in at least 18 of the state’s 35 legislative districts.
If approved, the initiative would expand Medicaid eligibility to include adults younger than the age of 65 who earn less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level. Doing so would provide access to preventative health care services for the estimated 51,000 to 62,000 Idahoans who fall into the “Medicaid gap,” meaning they earn too much to qualify under the existing Medicaid criteria, while earning too little to qualify for subsidized health insurance through the state exchange.
Even if the initiative is approved, though, the Idaho Legislature could block the effort. Unlike Washington, which requires lawmakers to wait two years before amending any law passed through an initiative, there is no waiting period in Idaho. (Lewiston Tribune)
