A legislative proposal to create a child care reinsurance pool in Montana has failed in a temporary committee, despite support from child care advocates.

According to the report, state lawmakers voted against introducing the draft legislation after extensive discussion at the Interim Committee on Economic Affairs meeting on Monday.

Supporters, including Zero to Five Montana, argued that the pool would ease the financial burden of premiums on child care providers.

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However, opponents expressed concerns about unintended consequences and potential risks to taxpayers.

“I would reject this current proposal, because I don’t think it would pass this committee. “But if Rep. Carlin wanted to work on reducing the red tape for starting child care, I would be open to that,” State Sen. Ken Bogner (R-Miles City) said during debate on the proposal Related.

“We’ve kind of reached the limit, from everything I’ve heard, of how much red tape can be reduced without compromising kids’ safety or making it harder for providers to access insurance,” State Rep. Jonathan Carlin (D-Missoula) added. He expressed hesitation about taking further regulatory measures.

Proposed funding options for the reinsurance pool included the state’s own revenue account, marijuana tax revenue, or the state’s general fund.

Montana Deputy Insurance Commissioner Frank Cote previously testified that a health reinsurance pool through the Montana Reinsurance Association reduced premiums by about 10%.

The reinsurance pool acts as a risk management tool for insurers, essentially providing insurance to insurers. This allows insurance companies to take on additional risks while reducing their exposure.

Meanwhile, in Kansas, a review of the state’s Medicaid eligibility revealed that nearly 47% of those who lost state health insurance coverage were 18 or younger.

Of the 75,532 Kansans who lost coverage, 24,673 were children between the ages of 0 and 12, and another 10,632 were between the ages of 13 and 18.

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