The Louisiana House on Thursday advanced to the Nov. 6 election ballot a proposed constitutional amendment that would protect the Medicaid Trust Fund for the Elderly from budget raids.
The House voted 92-2 for Senate Bill 82 sponsored by state Sen. Sherri Smith Buffington, R-Keithville.
State Rep. Walt Leger III, D-New Orleans, said the money in the fund must be spent on elderly health care. “We cannot misspend these funds or we have to pay back to the federal government,” Leger said. “This makes us more responsible fiscally.”
State Rep. Nancy Landry, R-Lafayette, said that those advocating the proposition favored sweeping other dedicated funds as part of budget balancing but now want to protect their funds. The Louisiana Nursing Home Association is pushing the proposition.
