Despite a poll by the Wason Center at Christopher Newport University showing that 56 percent of Virginia’s registered voters– including 55 percent of Republicans– support expansion of Medicaid in the state under the Affordable Care Act, our State Delegate Ben Cline spoke Feb. 5 at a rally in Richmond against expansion.
The rally was sponsored by the Koch brothers-backed Americans for Prosperity. The billionaire Koch brothers have spent and raised hundreds of millions of dollars to elect candidates friendly to big corporations. It’s no surprise that Koch Industries donated $1,000 to Cline’s 2013 election campaign. Nor is it a surprise that Cline has introduced a bill to lower Virginia’s corporate tax rate despite a lack of evidence that this will help create good permanent jobs.
As a Feb. 5 Lexington News-Gazette editorial noted, expansion of Medicaid would extend health insurance to 400,000 Virginians, including nearly 3,000 Rockbridge area residents: “Allowing more Virginians to lead healthier lives is a laudable goal that our legislators ought to be pursuing.”
Cline needs to decide whether he is on the side of the Koch brothers or on the side of the thousands of uninsured people in the 24th District.
If you want to let Ben Cline know how you feel about his opposition to Medicaid expansion, you can contact him at DelBCline@house.virginia.gov.
Lexington Democrats 