Utah Republicans scale back Medicaid expansion approved by voters

Protesters call on the Utah legislation to let Medicaid expansion go through.
(Image credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

Voters in Utah approved a ballot measure in November that would expand Medicaid, but on Monday, state lawmakers passed a bill that provides coverage to about half as many people and adds work requirements.

"This is a dark day for democracy in Utah," Andrew Roberts, a spokesman for the advocacy group Utah Decides, told The Associated Press. "State legislators turned their backs on voters and on families in need." Voters approved two measures: one that expanded Medicaid to people making less than $17,000 a year, and another that raised the sales tax in order to cover the expansion.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.