Corbett’s Medicaid proposal blasted as ‘political stunt’

Gov. Tom Corbett’s plan to reform Medicaid and expand federally subsidized private health care in Pennsylvania is causing a bit of a rift in his own party.

Some Republican lawmakers who have favored Medicaid expansion have voiced support for the governor’s plan. So has the state Republican Party.

But House GOP leaders haven’t come down on either side of the Medicaid plan. And Republican Rep. Daryl Metcalfe is calling the plan a political stunt.

“The governor is not going to get away with at this point in his term coming out and making this type of a proposal and thinking that it’s going to save him in next year’s elections,” Metcalfe said Tuesday, the day after Corbett unveiled his proposal.

The Butler County lawmaker has been the de facto leader of a small, hard-right contingent within the House GOP that has opposed Medicaid expansion and new funding for transportation infrastructure.

This time, he has been alone in his statements against the governor’s plan, one that Metcalfe characterized as a shell game.

“The governor is proposing to add more people to welfare in Pennsylvania,” he said. “I wish he’d be honest with the people of Pennsylvania and just say that.”

Corbett’s administration officials said the governor’s proposed changes to Medicaid do not require legislative approval — only a green light from federal officials.