COLUMBUS — During the darkest days of the Great Recession, Ohio didn’t have enough in its rainy day fund to buy even a candy bar. It held a balance of exactly 89 cents.
ATLANTA — Just as Medicaid prepares for a vast expansion under the federal health care overhaul, the 47-year-old entitlement program for the poor is under increasing pressure as deficit-burdened states chip away at benefits and cut payments to doctors.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Conservative Republicans have long clamored for government downsizing. They’re starting to get it — by default.