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Could gambling money lead to Medicaid expansion in Alabama? – Alabama Reflector

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Could gambling money lead to Medicaid expansion in Alabama? – Alabama Reflector


Buried in the gambling expansion bill is a provision that might give give Alabama the chance to expand Medicaid.

But no one seems to want to discuss it.

Not Rep. Andy Whitt, R-Harvest, who has helped draft the legislation. On his way to the House floor Thursday, Whitt said that providing health care to working adults has been a point of discussion in the past, but “the governor is the only one who could expand Medicaid.”

Not Alabama Arise, which has advocated for Medicaid expansion. The group declined comment on the provision Thursday.

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House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels, D-Huntsville, also avoided discussion about the bill. But he was clear when asked if he would support a gambling bill that lacked the provision.

“No,” he said.

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The appearance of Medicaid in the legislation adds an unprecedented opportunity to bring Medicaid expansion to the state, a long-held goal of both Democrats and health care professionals, particularly hospitals that say it’s essential to address a mounting crisis in public health in rural areas.

But it also adds risk to the legislation’s prospects. Some Republicans may balk at supporting a program they have long opposed on ideological grounds. Taking it out could threaten support from Democrats, whose support has been needed to pass prior gambling proposals amid divisions in the House GOP caucus.

The bill would allow — but not require — lawmakers to fund rural health care and qualified health benefit plans for “for adults with income below 138 percent of the federal poverty level and parents or other caretaker relatives of dependent children with income between 14 and 138 percent of the federal poverty level.”

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If allocated, the money for expansion would come from a Gaming Trust Fund, where taxes on casino and sports wagering would be held. A 2020 report from a commission convened by Gov. Kay Ivey estimated that fully expanded casinos and sports betting could bring between $310 and $410 million into state coffers.

Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act expands Medicaid services to anyone making up to 138% of the poverty level ($20,783 for an individual; $35,632 for a family of three).

Rep. Sam Jones, D-Mobile, the lone Democrat in a study group charged with introducing a comprehensive gambling bill, said Thursday that they wanted to include health care, including mental health in the distribution of gambling revenue. Legislators, he said, wrote the provision broadly so they “can either have Medicaid expansion or private plans.”

Like Whitt, Jones said Ivey will make the call on expansion. The bill, he said, would give them the option to do it.

“If we’re going to get new money in the state, we want to address some of the issues that we’ve not addressed for some period of time now,” Jones said.

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Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee Chair Greg Albritton, R-Atmore, a supporter of a comprehensive approach, has previously said he opposes Medicaid expansion, and said Wednesday after the bill was unveiled that the provision might be in the bill to garner “particular votes.”

Gov. Kay Ivey’s office did not return a request for comment Thursday.

Alabama has so far resisted Medicaid expansion, which has left 219,000 Alabamians in a limbo known as the coverage gap, according to KFF. Those in it make too much to qualify for traditional Medicaid and too little to qualify for subsidized Affordable Care Act plans offered in the marketplace.

House Republicans have expressed support for an Arkansas-type program that would use Medicaid expansion dollars in a public-private partnership.

Alabama House gambling bills include lottery, casinos, sports betting

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Previous research indicated that increased economic activity would eventually balance what the state would spend on expansion. According to a PARCA study, expansion would save Alabama an average of $172.4 million in health care costs over six years. That would be more than enough to cover the cost of the program.

The study estimated that spending in Alabama would go up by an average of $225 million a year over current Medicaid costs, but the state would also average nearly $400 million in savings over those same six years each year. Additionally, expansion would create an average of about 20,000 new jobs per year over the next six years and have an estimated average economic impact of nearly $2 billion per year over the next six years.

Danne Howard, deputy director of the Alabama Hospital Association, said in a phone interview Thursday that they support the wording in the bill. She said that according to their projections, closing the coverage gap would need funding from the state for at least 10 years.

“There’s no cost at stake, but who knows what things might look like 10 years from now or later. That additional revenue may be needed. This is an opportunity, or this is language, that would allow for it in future years, if it’s needed — but not mandated it if it’s not,” she said.

The Alabama Hospital Association plans to meet with staff from  the governor’s office next week to discuss what they describe as a plan to close the coverage gap.

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“It’s never a bad idea to have the possibility of a revenue stream if it’s needed years out. That is insurance,” she said.

Sports betting industry veteran David Vinturella, an instructor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas College of Education’s sport management program, said in an interview Thursday that revenues from both casinos and sports betting have been trending upward.

Nevada, he said, just broke a record of the most money wagered in casinos in the state, and it’s gone up every year before that, Vinturella said. Revenue for casinos were up 9% in December compared to December 2022.

“The revenue in the casinos like here in Nevada — it goes up every year, because they’re shifting the odds, they’re changing the way some of the games are played,” he said.

In Ohio, Vinturella said, over $1 billion dollars was bet in the first month of legal sports betting in the state, with a tax rate of 10%. Because of that success, the state increased the tax rate to 20%.

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“They were so successful in that first month that the state of Ohio went back and passed legislation to double their tax rate to 20%, effective July 1, so it was such a huge success in the state of Ohio,” he said.

House Ways and Means committee Chair Rex Reynolds, R-Huntsville, said Thursday that the provision is just part of “categories” the Legislature “could” fund.

“It’s just identifying some important categories that we may need to look at,” he said.

While he did not say where he leaned on the bill, he supports the money going to the General Fund to allow the Ways and Means committee to make those decisions on a year to year basis, “because our priorities may change,” he said.

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Alabama

Portion of Alabama 59 in Baldwin County closed following two-vehicle crash

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Portion of Alabama 59 in Baldwin County closed following two-vehicle crash


BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. (WALA) – A two-vehicle crash on Alabama 59 near Baldwin County 34 has closed down the road, according to law enforcement.

Authorities said the crash occurred at 8:23 pm.

Law enforcement is on scene investigating and there is no timetable on when it will be reopened.

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Alabama’s recent focus on defense pays off in blowout win over Kent State

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Alabama’s recent focus on defense pays off in blowout win over Kent State


TUSCALOOSA, Ala.Nate Oats started his postgame press conference explaining why Alabama would have a much better winter break after its 81-54 win over Kent State. According to Oats, a happy holiday hinged on the Tide’s defensive performance against the Golden Flashes.

“Much better defensive effort so it’ll be a lot better Christmas break for us,” Oats said with a smile at the podium. “We did make a big point of emphasis on defense, especially after that debacle up in North Dakota with [Fighting Hawks guard Treysen Eaglestaff].”

It was far from a perfect offensive display for the Tide against Kent State. Alabama’s lingering turnover issues reared its ugly head for a second straight and the Tide continued shooting poorly from 3-point range.

However, after defensive letdowns nearly sprang an upset in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Alabama got back to the basics over the next few days at practice. The team worked on defensive fundamentals rather than solely focusing on film study.

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That extra emphasis paid off as Alabama equaled its lowest points allowed in a game this season with 54. Tide forward Grant Nelson swatted a shot attempt by Kent State’s leading scorer VonCameron Davis in the opening few minutes, which helped set the tone the rest of the way.

“I think that [block] and just really everyone loading in the gaps, helping each other out,” Nelson said of Alabama’s defensive performance. “I thought that was huge. I think we kept them to six points in the first three media timeouts, that was huge for us. We emphasized that like I said and just a lot of credit to our guys for carrying it over on the court.”

While Alabama didn’t shoot the ball well, it made sure Kent State’s shooting was even more ineffective. Alabama communicated well on switches and contested shots from beyond the arc. It honed in on Davis, who averages 14.9 points per game but was limited to under 10 points for just the second time this season. Davis scored nine on an inefficient 4 of 15 from the field and had a minus-31 box plus-minus rating.

Coming into the game, Oats also felt like Kent State guard Jalen Sullinger (9.7 points per game) could be a dangerous weapon against Alabama’s defense with the potential to do the same thing Eaglestaff did for North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks guard scored a career-high 40 points, single-handedly pulling them back into the game late.

After missing the mark severely on guarding Eaglestaff, the Tide understood the assignment when it came to Sullinger and locked down the Kent State senior.

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“He ended up shooting 1 of 14 and didn’t score in the second half,” Oats said. “So I think we did a little bit of a better job being locked in to a perimeter guy. We held them to a pretty good field goal percentage, they only shot 28%. Traditionally, this has been one of the hardest playing teams — I was in the MAC for six years and they get all of the O Boards. We gave up too many second-chance points but I thought for the most part our first-shot defense was good.”

Alabama continued to play effective post-defense in spite of the offensive rebounds. The Tide finished with six blocks as a team. Center Clifford Omoruyi won the Hard Hat Award for the most blue collar points and grabbed 12 rebounds while Nelson had 14. Off the bench, Derrion Reid had a pair of steals while Mouhamed Dioubate chipped in with two blocks.

Following the win, Alabama jumped from No. 57 to No. 42 in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com. As the Tide looks to build on its defensive momentum, better play on offense will have to follow. Alabama’s defense is much improved from last season when it was at its best, but it won’t be able to win games on defense alone when league play tips off on Jan. 4.

“We struggled a little offensively, and we’re gonna have to figure some stuff out here before SEC play,” Oats said. “The turnovers have been really just way too many — 13 in the first half. We did the same thing two games in a row. We only had one the second half against North Dakota. We ended up with six in the second half here. So we’ve got to do a better job at turnovers. I don’t have an answer for the free throw problems, but the only way to fix that is get in the gym and work. The good thing for us is we don’t have any school for a few weeks here, so after they get back from Christmas break, we’ll be in the gym and putting some time in.”

Alabama will conclude non-conference play against Summit League side South Dakota State. The Tide and Jackrabbits will tip off at 2 p.m. CT Dec. 29 inside Coleman Coliseum. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

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How cold did Alabama get last night? These cities had the lowest temperatures

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How cold did Alabama get last night? These cities had the lowest temperatures


Very cold temperatures greeted Alabamians on Sunday morning.

The National Weather Service said temperatures overnight bottomed out in the low 20s in parts of the state and even were at the freezing mark in south Alabama.

Here were the lowest temperatures between midnight and 6 a.m. Sunday from around Alabama from the National Weather Service:

* Alexander City: 30 degrees

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* Anniston: 23 degrees

* Auburn: 28 degrees

* Birmingham: 24 degrees

* Decatur: 25 degrees

* Demopolis: 25 degrees

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* Dothan: 30 degrees

* Evergreen: 28 degrees

* Eufaula: 28 degrees

* Gadsden: 21 degrees

* Haleyville: 22 degrees

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* Huntsville: 26 degrees

* Mobile: 31 degrees

* Montgomery: 25 degrees

* Muscle Shoals: 24 degrees

* Ozark: 29 degrees

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* Prattville: 25 degrees

* Sylacauga: 24 degrees

* Talladega: 22 degrees

* Troy: 26 degrees

* Tuscaloosa: 25 degrees

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Temperatures today will be a few degrees higher than on Saturday. Highs will range from the low to mid-40s in south Alabama to the 50s in central Alabama, to the mid-50s in south Alabama (today’s forecast is at the top of this post).

Tonight will be chilly again, but not as cold as last night. Here are the forecast low temperatures from Sunday night into Monday morning:

Tonight’s low temperatures won’t be quite as cold as last night.NWS

Gradual warming is expected to continue this week, with the next chances for rain arriving on Wednesday, Christmas Day. The weather service isn’t expecting a lot of rain, and no severe weather is anticipated.

High temperatures on Christmas Day will be warmer, with 60s expected across a wide area and possibly some 70s near the coast. Here are the expected Christmas Day temperatures:

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Wednesday highs

It will be warmer across much of Alabama on Christmas Day. Above is the forecast for Wednesday.NWS

The warming trend looks to hold past Christmas. Here is the six- to 10-day temperature outlook, and it shows a high probability of above-average temperatures for Alabama through the end of December:

6-10 day temp outlook

Alabama has a high probability of experiencing above-average temperatures from Dec. 27- Dec. 31.Climate Prediction Center



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