On Monday afternoon, Governor Roy Cooper signed House Bill 76 into law, expanding Medicaid for North Carolinians.
"We have a Medicaid expansion bill," Cooper said as he signed the bill on the lawn of the Governor's Mansion.
State legislative leaders from both parties were in attendance, including N.C. Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R-Guilford, Rockingham) and state House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland, Rutherford). North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody Kinsley was also at the event.
“These changes will make North Carolina more attractive for providers, healthcare facilities and hospitals willing to do business and to compete here in North Carolina,” Berger said in a speech at the signing.
Cooper called this Medicaid expansion "one of the most important pieces of legislation of our lifetime" in a tweet on Monday.
"The strength of our communities depends on the health of our people," Cooper said in another tweet. "Today is a historic step. When this law takes effect, it will make health care accessible for more than 600,000 North Carolinians, including people struggling with mental illness, parents and veterans."
The bill passed in both chambers of the state legislature with large bipartisan majorities. Earlier this month, Moore and Berger announced they had come to an agreement on Medicaid expansion.
