Medicaid gets blamed for problems that plague the healthcare system, but it actually has inherited those burdens, according to a senator who wrote a newspaper editorial.

Medicaid has taken on “more and more responsibility for the health of the most vulnerable in our nation with fewer and fewer resources,” said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), who wrote an opinion piece in The Hill newspaper.

Because Medicare has not provided long-term care benefits, Medicaid has had to “foot the bill” for dual eligibles who need long-term care, he wrote.