The governor’s budget will be out early next week, but he has provided early indications of how he wants to spend some of the $22 billion in state general fund appropriations. One item stuck out from a press release yesterday:
— $10.4 million to match federal child health insurance funding to serve an additional 10,683 children in need.
Remember this next time someone tells you what a great deal federal money is for taxpayers because the state gets $2 for every $1 it spends. Not only have you also paid for the federal spending. Not only does that federal money mean other states are also applying for the same money. But the “free” federal money also requires the state to kick in even more of your tax dollars to match the federal spending.
Even worse is that these programs make it even harder to reform the health care system through tax changes and deregulation to truly help children and families in need.
