Dems try to force vote on expanding Medicaid coverage for new moms

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- While much of the focus at the state Capitol Wednesday, Nov. 19, was on an online sports betting bill that was pulled from the Assembly calendar, Democrats shined a spotlight on another bill that is not getting a vote in that chamber.

In a rarely used move, Assembly Democrats tried to circulate a petition that would force a vote on a bill that would expand Medicaid coverage for new moms who qualify for aid.

Currently, that pregnancy coverage lasts for the first 60 days after birth.

A bipartisan bill would extend that coverage to one year.

The bill passed in the Senate 32 to 1 this past spring, but it has been stuck in an Assembly committee since then.

On Wednesday, Democrats listed the 29 Assembly Republicans who've co-sponsored the bill and called for them to push back on Speaker Robin Vos' refusal to bring the bill before the full Assembly.

"These are legislators who believe this bill should become law, so they say, but they have been bullied by their speaker into not pushing for a vote on this bill on the floor," Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer (D-Racine) said.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, Wisconsin and Arkansas are the only two states that do not give eligible new moms Medicaid coverage for up to one year after a child is born.

A spokesperson for Vos did not immediately respond to questions about the bill and why it hasn't gotten a vote in the Assembly.