South Dakota Senate rejects Medicaid expansion, leaving it to election

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - A proposal to expand Medicaid health coverage eligibility was defeated in the South Dakota Senate.

That leaves the decision to voters in the November election.

Republican Sen. Wayne Steinhauer had brought a proposal to the Legislature to make Medicaid, a federal-state health insurance program for low-income people, available to people who live below 133% of the federal poverty level.

The Republican-controlled Senate rejected his bill. But a campaign backed by South Dakota’s major health care systems is trying to get voters to pass a constitutional amendment to expand Medicaid eligibility on the November ballot.