Last night, the Michigan Senate voted to close the coverage gap by accepting the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid option.  The state House must approve it again to accept the slight changes made by the Senate before the bill can be sent to Governor Rick Snyder for his signature.

Once the measure is signed into law, about 470,000 Michigan residents will be lifted out of the coverage gap as they become eligible for Medicaid coverage. It’s heartening to see that Governor Snyder’s perseverance paid off as he helped lead his legislature on a path forward to meeting the needs of his constituents.

“It’s about helping 470,000 Michiganders have a better life,” Snyder said during a press conference following the vote Tuesday night. “We all know someone that falls in that category: hardworking people but lower-income people that couldn’t afford health insurance.”

Hopefully other states will follow Michigan’s lead so that uninsured residents of every state can realize the full benefit of the Affordable Care Act.

(Editor’s Note: We’ll have more to say on the details of the Michigan waiver request once we’ve had more time to sift through the proposal.)