JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Medicaid expansion talks have hit a wall after House Speaker Jason White (R-Miss.) announced Wednesday that the latest House proposal would have Mississippi voters voice their opinion on Medicaid expansion through a ballot initiative.

The proposal has not been well received in the Senate with no discussions likely to take place. However, the issue is not officially dead yet.

This effort is coming from House Democrats, and it revolves around the work requirement that has split both chambers on Medicaid expansion.

House Minority Leader Rep. Robert Johnson III (D-District 94) approached Senate leadership with a compromise that would allow for the state to apply for a work requirement once, but if denied, no work requirement would be applied for.

House Democrats opposed the conference report because of the work requirement.

With the federal government denying every Medicaid expansion plan with a work requirement throughout the Biden Administration, many members saw no point in voting for a measure that is likely to never be federally approved.

Johnson said he’s spoken with leadership about the plan, and Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann (R-Miss.) said they’re open to hearing it, but it’s unlikely that the Senate would be receptive.

“What we couldn’t abide by was submitting a waiver every year with the same information that CMS said, ‘We’re not going to accept,’ and requested that, if at all possible, if they could resubmit a conference report without the reapplication with work requirements in it. I was hopeful when I left the Senate, but there doesn’t seem to be much of an appetite right now anywhere else,” said Johnson.

“We’ll consider just about anything, you know, but we have nothing in writing and these hall conversations don’t produce necessarily good legislation. We’re you know, we’re the deliberative body over here. The people behind me, they like to think about things. They want to see what options are. They want to see what the ramifications are of each step. And so. I honor that for my senators. Our senators, we’re prepared to pass a working bill for the first time on this particular issue that I can remember, and we let it get away. And I’m not happy about it,” said Hosemann.

Lawmakers have until 8:00 p.m. on Thursday to reach a deal on a conference report or Medicaid expansion will die.