Less medicaid, more tuition.When Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was going to ask George Bush for lots of favors, he betrayed a shocking ignorance of the president's indifference to the plight of the states. Republicans are supposed to favor the states, but during the Bush administration, state revenues have plummeted, thanks in part to the tax cut's reduction of the federal money available for sharing with the states. The result includes states having to reduce their Medicaid programs by, reports The New York Times, "scaling hack eligibility, cutting benefits, increasing co-payments, and freezing or reducing payments to doctors and hospitals." Another result of the financial squeeze on the states is what the Times calls the "eye-popping tuition increases" at state universities and colleges, with double-digit rises all over the place topped off by 39 percent at the University of Arizona. Since 80 percent of college students attend state schools, this should not be a cause for indifference. |
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