A majority of Republican and unaffiliated voters would back efforts to expand health insurance to people caught in the “coverage gap” between Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, according to a poll released Tuesday morning by backers of expansion efforts. Read more at: http://www.wral.com/poll-nc-voters-back-health-care-expansion/15274337/#7M483ElCoK8kUh1Y.99

Mark Hall and Edwin Shoaf, nationally recognized health care law experts, released Monday a 12-page brief that weighs the pros and cons of expanding the N.C. Medicaid program. They come down in favor of expansion, saying the time has come “for an honest dialogue about the costs and benefits of expanding Medicaid.” Read more at: http://www.journalnow.com/news/local/wake-forest-health-law-professors-argue-in-favor-of-medicaid/article_ffb45a94-2962-5448-afd0-7d267c82807d.html

With legislative leadership opposing Medicaid expansion, a local legislator believes events like a rally in Durham this week are important to reversing its stance. “This is a critical time for people to speak out,” Rep. Graig Meyer said. As the 2016 election season kicks off, he hopes voters will both bring new voices to the legislature and “convince people who …

North Carolina’s failure to expand Medicaid already has cost its residents billions of dollars in lost business opportunity, shrunken government revenues and increased health care costs, a panel of health-care advocates said Tuesday. Read more at: http://www.greensboro.com/news/advocates-push-to-expand-medicaid-in-north-carolina/article_7383a2f9-dbf5-5ed2-9ad7-4230f9da920a.html

Wednesday’s event is called “Status of Medicaid Expansion: What’s On the Political Horizon?” It’s free and open to the public. Read more at: http://chapelboro.com/news/state-government/medicaid-expansion-in-nc

December 18 marked the one-year anniversary of the release of a first-of-its-kind, county-by-county study, showing that by 2020, the North Carolina workforce could grow by more than 43,000 jobs, and the state’s economy could gain tens of billions in business revenue if the state expands Medicaid eligibility requirements. The report, a nonpartisan economic analysis authored by university researchers and funded …

One of the biggest stories of the 2015 General Assembly is what lawmakers didn’t do and the people they didn’t help. They again declined to follow the lead of 30 other states and the District of Columbia and expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act and provide health care coverage for as many as 500,000 low-income adults, create thousands of jobs, and help struggling …