Voters nationwide headed to the midterm polls Nov. 8. Here are results in states with healthcare referendums on the ballot. Some results were too close to call as of Nov. 9.
In Arizona, voters overwhelmingly passed a proposition to reduce medical debt, according to The New York Times. Interest on Arizonians' medical debt will drop from 10 percent to 3 percent, and protection on some equities will increase to ensure they are not taken to offset medical debt. The amount of weekly disposable income subject to debt collection will be sliced by more than half.
In South Dakota, voters approved expanding Medicaid under the ACA with about 56 percent support, according to Politico. The program is effective in July. Under the program, more than 42,000 state residents will become eligible for Medicaid coverage, according to a healthinsurance.org news release shared with Becker's. Overall, Washington, D.C., and nearly 40 states have expanded Medicaid.
In Oregon, the ballot included Measure 111, which, if passed, would enshrine affordable healthcare as a human right in the state constitution. As of 9:44 a.m. EST Nov. 9, with 64 percent of votes in, 49.5 percent were in favor of the measure, while 50.5 percent were not, according to the Times.
In Michigan and California, voters decided to make reproductive freedom, explicitly including abortion and contraception, a state constitutional right, according to the Times.
In Vermont, voters approved a proposal making personal reproductive autonomy a constitutional right, according to the Times.
In Kentucky, voters approved an amendment stating there is no right to abortion, or any requirement to fund it, in the state constitution, according to the Times.
In Montana, as of 9:44 a.m. EST Nov. 9, with 80 percent of votes in, 53 percent of voters said no to the "born-alive infants referendum," the Times reported. The referendum seeks to criminalize healthcare workers who do not make every effort to save the life of a fetus or infant "born alive" during an attempted abortion, or after labor or cesarean section — this includes any who breathe, have a hearbeat or show voluntary muscle movement.