OKPOLICY.ORG
What’s up this week at Oklahoma Policy Institute? The Weekly Wonk shares our most recent publications and other resources to help you stay informed about Oklahoma. Numbers of the Day and Policy Notes are from our daily news briefing, In The Know. Click here to subscribe to In The Know.
This Week from OK Policy
One step forward for youth this session, two steps back on investment: This session, Oklahoma took action to protect youth from harmful systems and shield students with special needs from physical abuse at school. Lawmakers also passed a measure that will examine the feasibility of modernizing Oklahoma’s application for social support benefits. These measures, coupled with investment in support that Oklahomans need, could prevent youth from harm while strengthening their families’ ability to thrive. [Jill Mencke / OK Policy]
- From OK Policy: HB 1965 will help connect first-time youth offenders in Oklahoma with community-based services (video)
Policy Matters: Protests get likes; voting gets results: But now what? That’s the question hanging in the air after the “No Kings” protests swept across the country, including more than 10 rallies held statewide in Oklahoma. For the folks who attended: You marched. You showed up. You made a statement. Now comes the part that doesn’t trend — turning action into real, lasting political change. [Shiloh Kantz / The Journal Record]
Cash bail doesn’t make us safer, but pretrial reform can (Capitol Update): It may be time for the legislature to take another look at pretrial release reform in Oklahoma. Pretrial reform would protect the public and help Oklahoma honor the fundamental principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” [Steve Lewis / Capitol Update]
Weekly What’s That
Open Primaries
Open primaries is a term that encompasses a number of systems that states use for conducting political primaries, none of which limit individuals to voting only in the primary of the party they are registered for (‘closed primary’). The main variations of open primaries, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, are:
- Partially open: voters may cross party lines to vote in primaries but they must publicly declare their ballot choice (4 states);
- Open to unaffiliated voters: unaffiliated voters may participate in any party primary they choose, but voters registered with one party may not vote in another party’s election (7 states);
- Open: voters may choose which party primary to vote in; generally there is no party registration and voting in a party’s primary does not register the voter with that party (15 states).
In addition, five states have variations of “multi-party primaries” in which all voters, regardless of party registration, may vote in a single primary, with the top two vote recipients (or four, in Alaska) then squaring off in a runoff election.
Oklahoma’s primary system is categorized as “partially closed,” as each party may decide whether or not to allow unaffiliated (independent) voters to vote in their primaries. In Oklahoma, the Democratic Party has allowed independent voters, while the Republican Party has not included them.
Supporters of closed primaries argue that party members should be allowed to choose their own candidates, while critics argue that the system disenfranchises registered independents and also tends to favor more ideologically extreme candidates who can draw support from the party base but may lack broader appeal.
In Oklahoma, an initiative petition, SQ 836, has been filed that would open up primaries for most state elections. Under SQ 836, all candidates for an office would appear on one primary ballot regardless of party, with the top-two vote-getters moving forward to the general election. Organizers hope to meet the requirements to appear on the 2026 ballot.
Look up more key terms to understand Oklahoma politics and government here.
Quote of the Week
“Cutting health care and food aid is not aligned with Oklahoma values. It is a betrayal of them.”
– Tiffany Tagbo, writing in an op-ed about the U.S. Senate’s push to pass the federal reconciliation bill through reconciliation — a budget tool meant for fine-tuning fiscal policy, now being exploited to bypass transparency and debate. [Oklahoma Voice]
Op-Ed of the Week
Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ has serious flaws that will hurt Oklahomans
Oklahoma’s entire congressional delegation recently voted for H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a sweeping bill that supporters claim will root out Medicaid fraud and restore fiscal responsibility. But a closer look reveals misleading data, misplaced priorities and policies that could do more harm than good — especially to Oklahomans.
In a recent letter to a constituent, Rep. Stephanie Bice claimed that 4.8 million “able bodied adults choose not to work,” 1.4 million undocumented immigrants are receiving Medicaid, and another 1.2 million people are enrolled who don’t qualify. None of these claims withstand scrutiny. The 4.8 million figure refers to adults without dependents who are enrolled in Medicaid. It does not mean they’re refusing to work. Many are employed in low-wage jobs or face barriers like mental illness, caregiving responsibilities or lack of transportation — especially in rural areas. The idea that 1.4 million undocumented immigrants are receiving Medicaid is simply false. Federal law already bars undocumented people from accessing full Medicaid benefits. The only exception is emergency care, and there is no reliable data showing widespread abuse of this exception.
As for the 1.2 million supposedly ineligible enrollees, the vast majority are due to state administrative errors, not intentional fraud. In fact, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimates that less than 10% of improper payments are tied to fraud. Most are the result of paperwork mistakes or system glitches.
And yet, H.R. 1 imposes new restrictions — particularly work requirements — that could strip coverage from thousands of low-income Oklahomans. Nearly 1 in 4 Oklahomans rely on Medicaid. For many in rural communities, it’s the only path to care. These new barriers don’t reduce fraud; they reduce access.
If this were truly about cracking down on fraud, we’d hear more about the billions lost to high level, corporate abuse. But there’s been no outrage from our delegation about the fact that President Donald Trump — whose name headlines the bill — commuted the sentences of people responsible for more than $1.8 billion in actual Medicaid and Medicare fraud. That includes Lawrence Duran, who ran one of the largest mental health scams in U.S. history, bilking taxpayers out of more than $200 million. Others received similar clemency for orchestrating massive schemes. Not one member of Oklahoma’s congressional delegation has addressed this contradiction.
Sens. James Lankford and Markwayne Mullin, along with Reps. Bice, Kevin Hern, Tom Cole, Frank Lucas and Josh Brecheen, all support H.R. 1. While several have echoed the need to fight “waste, fraud and abuse,” none have challenged the misleading statistics or the double standard of punishing low-income patients while letting white-collar fraudsters off the hook.
We absolutely need accountability in public programs. But accountability must go both ways. It must include oversight of providers and corporations that exploit loopholes — not just policies that make it harder for working families to get the care they need. Oklahoma has some of the highest rates of poverty and uninsured adults in the country. We can’t afford policies that target the wrong people.
H.R. 1 doesn’t solve fraud — it redirects blame. Oklahomans deserve better than political posturing. We deserve leadership rooted in truth, fairness and a serious commitment to protecting both taxpayers and patients.
Numbers of the Day
$16,500 – The estimated annual cost to provide licensed center-based child care for an infant in Oklahoma. While costs decrease as children age, the average never drops below $8,000 per year for children under age 5. [RAND]
31% – The percent of rural hospitals in Oklahoma that face immediate risk of closure. Proposed deep cuts to Medicaid in the Senate’s reconciliation package threaten these vulnerable facilities and jeopardize health access in rural Oklahoma. [Center for American Progress]
3,432 – The number of youth who entered foster care in Oklahoma in 2023 — equating to a rate of 3.55 per 100,000 children. That ranks Oklahoma 33rd in the nation, though two states did not report data. [The Administration for Children and Families]
686,800 – The number of Oklahoma residents reached by SNAP in federal fiscal year 2024 — accounting for 17% of the state population, or 1 in 6 people. [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities]
What We’re Reading
How States Are Trying to Make Child Care More Affordable: States are piloting diverse strategies — such as tax credits for private donations, cost-sharing grants, regulatory easing for providers, and employer-supported childcare — to lower costs and expand access for working families. These initiatives aim to stabilize the childcare sector, retain quality providers, and boost workforce participation and business recruitment by treating childcare as an economic and public-good priority. [Governing]
Republicans Threaten a Hospital Apocalypse: Senate Republicans’ proposed budget reconciliation bill dramatically scales back Medicaid provider-tax financing, which could accelerate closures of rural and safety-net hospitals already weakened by prior pandemic-era shutdowns. Experts warn that shuttered rural facilities would overload the entire care system, reducing access even for insured patients, while compounding financial strain from rising uncompensated emergency care. [The American Prospect]
Protect and Redirect: America’s Growing Movement to Divert Youth Out of the Justice System: Diversion programs, which steer youth away from arrest and formal juvenile court, are proven to reduce re-arrests and improve educational and employment outcomes — especially compared to traditional court processing — and help address racial and ethnic disparities. Best practices include pre-charge diversion, independent oversight outside of probation or prosecutors, data-driven evaluation, and effective public messaging emphasizing accountability through support rather than punishment. [The Sentencing Project]
Oklahoma Summer EBT Recipients Report Lower Food Insecurity, but Access Remains Unequal: Oklahoma Summer EBT recipients reported food insecurity at a rate of 65%, compared with 82% among eligible non-recipients — highlighting a significant reduction in hunger for participating households. However, access to the benefit remains uneven, with disparities in outreach and enrollment, particularly in rural and Tribal-serving areas. [The Urban Institute]
