Arizona Drops Children’s Health Program

[DesertFlower]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/19/health/policy/19arizona.html

Arizona on Thursday became the first state to eliminate its Children’s Health Insurance Program when Gov. Jan Brewer signed an austere budget that will leave nearly 47,000 low-income children without coverage.

The Arizona budget is a vivid reflection of how the fiscal crisis afflicting state governments is cutting deeply into health care. The state also will roll back Medicaid coverage for childless adults in a move that is expected to eventually drop 310,000 people from the rolls.

[DJ13]

1. Any state that drops a program mostly paid for by tobacco taxes

should no longer be able to charge those taxes in their state.

[rgbecker]

2. Go Arizona, Go! Let'em all die!

USA! USA!

[DesertFlower]

3. despicable, isn't it?

[rgbecker]

4. McCain country.

[xchrom]

5. I just now drove through northern Arizona

If they care for their children like they care for their
roads -- and they do now -- then kids in Arizona
are in for a rough, rough ride.

[Catshrink]

6. It's ugly.

The Leg. is infested with those who put ideology above all else. The "leadership" all took the Grover Norquist pledge not to raise taxes and they fear that more than their constituents. When they ordered across the board 12% cuts to state agencies, the Leg. only took a 5% cut saying they'd already cut to the bone and couldn't go any lower. But they expect everyone else to do with less.

I just never thought they'd cut off the help to sick kids. They also tried, but were rebuffed, to close down the juvenile justice system and transfer the kids to county jails that don't have the resources. They aren't raising taxes but are shifting the burden to the counties so what's the difference? They want cover from accusations of breaking their pledge to Grover Norquist. We won't talk about what they've done to schools.

Their way of balancing the budget is to cut to the bone but cut taxes to businesses. Business is sacrosant.

[DesertFlower]

7. i live in arizona. i'd rather have

my taxes raised.

two weeks ago the arizona senate voted that texting while driving is not against the law. now this.

[Catshrink]

8. Me too.

Did Pearce get his 10 Commandments monument? They sure have their priorities straight. :sarcasm: