Lamontagne tries to distance himself from support of state-managed Medicare

Republican gubernatorial candidate Ovide Lamontagne Thursday tried to distance himself from his own support for the state to eventually manage Medicare coverage for seniors.
During a debate at New England College in Henniker, Lamontagne stressed Medicare is federally financed and a state playing any role in the future would rely on congressional approval.
“I am running for governor, not for Congress,” said Lamontagne, who did seek seats in the U.S. House in 1994 and the U.S. Senate in 2010.
The Republican-led state House of Representatives passed a bill the Senate rejected that would have allowed the state to enter into a compact with like-minded states and ask Congress if they could take over Medicare management.
Lamontagne did not publicly endorse that measure.
But Lamontagne’s health care reform plan on his own campaign website supports block grants for Medicare and the Medicaid, the health care program for the poor and disabled.
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