JEFFERSON CITY — A Missouri House committee has approved a Republican alternative to the Medicaid expansion plan outlined in the federal Affordable Care Act, setting up the proposal for a potential debate on the House floor. The decision on whether to expand Missouri's health care program for the poor has been one of the most debated topics of the session. Democrat-backed expansion efforts have swiftly been killed this session, but the House Government Oversight Committee gave bipartisan support Wednesday evening to a reform-based bill that would expand coverage in Missouri — but not to the level outlined in the federal health care law.