Liberal activist Peter Hancock of the Lawrence Journal-World reported on the GOP gubernatorial primary election shortly after it was clear that Gov. Brownback had won the election. According to Hancock, Brownback won despite a "surprisingly strong showing by a virtual unknown in politics." In the same article, Hancock noted that "Secretary of State Kris Kobach handily won his GOP primary." Note that Brownback won over Winn 63% to 37%. Kobach won over Scott Morgan 65% to 35%. Apparently, Hancock believes the difference between winning "handily" and facing a "surprising strong showing" from an opponent is two percentage points.
Not content with reporting on just the election results, Hancock continued with this tidbit: "Brownback's primary win came on the same day that a new Gallup poll showed Kansas is the only state in the nation to see an increase in the number of uninsured residents since enactment of the federal health insurance law, commonly known as Obamacare." Hancock provided a link to a Kansas City Star article about the poll, but he obviously failed to read that article. If he had, he would have noticed the headline: "Kansas is the only state to see a significant increase in its uninsured rate, survey says." (My emphasis) Hancock dropped the word "significant" from his reporting. If you check out the actual Gallup poll, you'll find that two other states--Iowa and Virginia--also saw increases in their uninsured rates.
Hancock also failed to include a qualification from Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, who supports Obamacare. According to Praeger in the Star's article, the number “appears to be an anomaly that needs more review. To have the uninsured jump that much in one year would be unprecedented.” Praeger added, “We will try to find out where the discrepancy is.”
According to the Star, Dan Witters, research director for the Well-Being Index, "did not offer an explanation for the growth in the uninsured population in Kansas. However, Kansas is among the states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs to cover more people with low incomes, an option through the Affordable Care Act."
That is true. However, 21 states that also did not expand their Medicaid programs saw decreases in their uninsured rates.
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