Dear Governor Blunt:
I am an Ohio resident who travels to Missouri quite frequently for business purposes. I recently read an article in the March 7th Columbia Missourian. It referenced two st. Louis University economics professors and their study of the economic and business impact of your administration's intent to cut over $200 million from Missouri Medicaid funding in your 2006 budget proposal.
I understand your state's Medicaid cut will save our national government some $379 million in matching funds pledged as part of the 60+% federal matching fund formula. This means you are saving hundreds of millions of dollars for taxpayers nationwide, and I suppose I should thank you on behalf of all of them.
However, I do feel bad about the 10,000-plus Missouri residents who will lose their jobs as a result of your preventing $379 million in Federal funding from reaching Missouri (not to mention the ensuing $700+million loss in Missouri business activity that those St. Louis University professors also forecasted in the Columbia Missourian article).
I also imagine that there will be many thousands more uninsured Missourians becquse of those job losses and the absence of all that business activity.
But I assure you that Americans elsewhere appreciate your willingness to have your state bite the bullet, set an example and help U.S. taxpayers everywhere else.
Governor Blunt, again thank you. I really appreciate your concern for all us taxpaying citizens outsie your state.
Very sincerely,
(signed)
Michael J. Baird
