Ohio’s Lieutenant Governor - who is running for the Republican nomination for governor next year - is pushing a plan to deal with opioids that some consider unusual, especially given her opposition to Medicaid expansion.
Mary Taylor fought against expanding Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act. Her boss, Gov. John Kasich, went around her and the legislature to put the plan in place anyway. And he says it's helped with the opioid crisis.
Taylor now says as governor, she would propose a 10-year bond issue of up to $1 billion for new treatment facilities and medical research. And she says it also could help patients who don’t have health insurance.
Voters would have to approve the proposal.
Taylor, whose two sons who have battled opioid abuse, also says she'd end Medicaid expansion. Medicaid expansion provides money for substance abuse and mental health treatment, and reports have found that freezing or ending the program would hurt Ohio's fight against the opioid crisis.
Taylor faces Attorney General Mike DeWine, Secretary of State Jon Husted and Rep. Jim Renacci in the May primary for governor.
