Kansas lawmakers fail to override governor's Medicaid expansion veto

Kansas won&#039;t be able to expand Medicaid.

(Image credit: iStock)

published 3 April 2017

Kansas' proposed Medicaid expansion failed to survive Republican Gov. Sam Brownback's veto Monday, with the override vote failing 81-44 in the state's House of Representatives. Eighty-four votes were needed to override the veto, which Brownback issued Thursday.

Kansas was one of several Republican-led states to explore Medicaid expansion after the failure of the GOP health-care bill last month. Kansas state senator John Doll (R) described the attempt to override Brownback's veto as "something we need to do," but earning enough bipartisan votes proved to be a difficult task.

"To expand ObamaCare when the program is in a death spiral is not responsible policy," a spokesperson for Brownback said.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.