Medicaid is terrible. Can Republicans fix it?

It's time to debunk the great liberal lie on this lousy program that ObamaCare dramatically expanded

Let's replace!
(Image credit: Cultura RM / Alamy Stock Photo)

Medicaid is arguably the civilized world's worst health insurance program. And fixing it will be even harder for Republicans than grappling with the rest of ObamaCare.

This joint federal and state program has historically allowed the feds to give states 50 cents for every dollar they spent on purchasing health coverage for the poor. Because of this federal largesse, Medicaid has grown astronomically, becoming the single biggest ticket item on virtually every state budget. But it's not just expensive — it provides lousy coverage, too!

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Shikha Dalmia

Shikha Dalmia is a visiting fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University studying the rise of populist authoritarianism.  She is a Bloomberg View contributor and a columnist at the Washington Examiner, and she also writes regularly for The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and numerous other publications. She considers herself to be a progressive libertarian and an agnostic with Buddhist longings and a Sufi soul.