Under the Graham-Cassidy healthcare proposal, nearly all states would receive the same amount of money per eligible beneficiary, but Alaska would receive $2,100 more per person, according to projections from the office of Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., reported by Business Insider.
The projections show that by 2026, almost every state would receive $4,400 per eligible beneficiary, as part of the bill's block grant healthcare funding. Alaska would receive $6,500.
After noticing a tweet about the discrepancy from the National Review's Robert VerBruggen, Business Insider contacted Mr. Cassidy's office. The office immdiately took the spreadsheet off their website . An office staffer clarified that a new version of the bill will include bonuses for low-density states with healthcare costs more than 20 percent above the national mean. Low-density is defined here as having fewer than 15 residents per square mile.
Of the five low-density states across the country, only Alaska and North Dakota have qualifying healthcare costs. North Dakota did not receive the same bonus as Alaska in the office's projections.
Theses changes come as Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who voted against previous Republican healthcare efforts in July, decides whether to support the Graham-Cassidy bill.
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