Zombie Voters

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, "We found out that there were over 900 people who died and then subsequently voted. That number could be even higher than that." The allegations emerged as South Carolina officials sought to impose a new voter photo ID law during the 2012 election. The claims of 953 votes by dead people actually involved not one election but 74 elections over a seven-year period. In the end, just five votes out of 1,365,480 remained unresolved after extensive investigation. The final report was just made public this month after a 13-month review by Wilson's office. In fact, the report was only released after the Free Times, Columbia, S.C. submitted a Freedom of Information Act request.

Immigration reform

U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa said, "For everyone (illegal immigrant) who's a valedictorian, there's another 100 out there that, they weigh 130 pounds and they've got calves the size of cantaloupes, because they're hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert. Those people would be legalized with the same act."

King's comments drew withering condemnation from his fellow Republicans as well as ardent advocates for reform. Eighty percent of Border Patrol drug busts involve American citizens. Four out of five times, U.S. citizens were nabbed as smugglers. The requirements to qualify under the Dream Act: Persons who were brought to America before they turned 15, can prove that they have lived in this country for at least five years, and have had no run-ins with the law. Drug smugglers are unlikely to meet these requirements. Sen. Ted Cruz said there will be "20 or 30 million" people living in the U.S. illegally "in another 10, 20 years" if the Senate immigration bill becomes law. But the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says the bill, if enacted, will reduce future illegal immigration compared with current law.

The CBO projects the total "net decline in future unauthorized residents" would be 2.4 million by 2023 if the latest version of the Senate bill becomes law.

In 10 years, there would be 4 million "future unauthorized residents" under the Senate-passed bill - a "net decline in future unauthorized residents" of 37.5 percent from the 6.4 million CBO projects under current law.

Medicaid

Twenty-four states are expanding Medicaid, 21 states are not expanding Medicaid, and debate is on-going in the remaining 6 states. 6.4 million will remain uninsured if all 27 states do not adopt expanded Medicaid. Texas, Florida and Georgia account for half of the uninsured in the states not moving forward. If 27 states do not expand Medicaid, they will forgo $496.9 billion in federal aid over 10 years. These states would experience larger percentage increases in federal funds relative to the states moving forward with the expansion.

For states moving forward with the expansion, increases in federal funding will greatly outweigh any potential increases in state expenditures and will have positive economic effects, increasing employment and state general revenues. The decision not to adopt the Medicaid expansion will create inequities in coverage.

Those with incomes below 100 percent will not be eligible for subsidies in exchanges or for Medicaid coverage beyond current eligibility levels. This leaves considerable gaps in coverage and will also result in substantially less revenue for hospitals.

Under the ACA, hospitals in these states will still face cutbacks in Medicare and Medicaid disproportionate share hospital payments as well as lower Medicare payment rates independent of whether or not a state adopts the Medicaid expansion. They will still be faced with serving a large uninsured population.

http://kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/analyzing-the-impact-of-state-medicaid-expansion-decisions

www.politifact.com