News and Music Discovery
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Tea Party Activists Tell Kentucky Lawmakers to Reject Obamacare

wikimedia.com

As the 2013 Kentucky legislative session begins, Tea Party activists are encouraging lawmakers to abandon the implementation of the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare — in the state because of fiscal and health care concerns.

About 50 activists rallied in the Capitol Rotunda Tuesday; they wanted their state legislators to hear their concerns as the 2013 legislative session began.

Kentucky can’t afford running its own health exchanges or to expand Medicaid, argued David Adams, a rally organizer.

“It doesn’t take a forensic accountant to look at our fiscal situation and realize that we have no business getting into this sandbox whatsoever,” Adams says.

Lexington businesswoman Kathy Gornik says the law puts too much bureaucracy between doctors and patients. And she advocated a return to a system that puts the patient in control.

“A return to free market principles, where the patient is the employer of the physician and the physician is obligated only to the patient,” she says.

So far, Kentucky has set up their ownhealth exchanges under an executive order from Gov. Steve Beshear. But the governor has not decided on whether to expand Medicaid enrollment.

Kenny Colston is the Frankfort Bureau Chief for Kentucky Public Radio (a collaborative effort of public radio stations in Kentucky). Colston has covered Kentucky's Capitol and state government since 2010. He is a Louisville native, and a graduate of the University of Kentucky. When he's not tracking down stories about Kentucky politics, you can often find him watching college sports, particularly football.
Related Content