Good reasons to support Initiative 185

Are you or do you know someone that is currently receiving benefits from Medicaid?

Have you or someone you loved ever used the ER at one of our local hospitals?

Do you have a loved one who is residing in the extended care facility at a rural hospital?

Do you have a life threatening condition and could need immediate medical care at any point in the future?

Are you currently underinsured and could benefit from extra help should you need extensive medical care?

Do you have a child, grandchild or other loved one who is of middle- or high-school age who is being subjected to the “benefits and fun” of vaping?

Do you have a parent or other loved one who is dying from COPD or lung cancer, and is still continuing to smoke?

Are you (or a member of your family) employed at one of our local hospitals?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then it is in your best interest to vote “FOR” I-185, the Healthy Montana Initiative. Medicaid expansion is set to sunset next June, and you can bet that our legislature will either not fund it or severely limit who qualifies for the program — by either implementing a work requirement or denying benefits to those who have “too many assets” (i.e., property, 4-wheelers, campers, etc.).

Additionally, keeping those nearly 100,000 people in our state who now rely on Medicaid expansion insured also helps to keep the doors of our rural, critical access hospitals open.

Cigarette companies are pouring millions of dollars into their campaign to defeat I-185. And their motivation is one thing and one thing only — profits. It’s not for the health of Montanans.

— Diane Magone, candidate HD14, Superior