Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As N.H. Weighs Future Of Medicaid Expansion, Report Highlights Higher Costs For Enrollees
New Hampshire Union Leader: Medicaid Platinum, Silver For The Rest
The path New Hampshire has taken toward expanding Medicaid is pushing prices up for everyone else who buys health insurance on the Obamacare exchange at healthcare.gov, according to an analysis recently completed for the Insurance Department. The average medical costs for the newly insured Medicaid patients are 26 percent higher than the non-Medicaid population on the exchange, even though the Medicaid patients are on average younger. That is in large part because Medicaid patients are getting platinum plans that they use more aggressively because they have no co-pays or deductibles, while those paying some or all of their policy premiums are mostly in silver plans that they use more judiciously, according to the actuarial firm conducting the analysis. (Solomon, 8/28)
The Associated Press: Report: N.H. Medicaid Expansion Population More Costly
Medicaid expansion, made possible through President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul law, subsidizes health care for low-income people. New Hampshire’s version uses federal dollars to put about 43,000 people on private insurance plans and will sunset at the end of next year if not reauthorized by lawmakers. ... The department isn’t making any recommendations about the program’s future, however. “There are a lot of moving pieces, even more than when the program was created,” said Jennifer Patterson, an attorney for the Insurance Department and a member of a commission studying the program’s effectiveness. (Ramer, 8/28)
New Hampshire Public Radio: Report: N.H. Medicaid Expansion Patients Younger, Costlier Than The Rest Of Individual Market
The report, produced by Gorman Actuarial, looked only at data for 2016 — and so, author Bela Gorman said, its findings could change amid lots of other changing factors in the insurance landscape. ... Those covered through the Premium Assistance Program, or expanded Medicaid, made up 42 percent of the individual market in 2016. During that time, Gorman told the panel, the big-picture takeaway based on an initial look at the expanded Medicaid population: “They are younger, they’re enrolled in more comprehensive plans, they have higher risk scores, and there are greater claims costs” than the rest of the individual insurance market. (McDermott, 8/28)
In other Medicaid news —
Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger: Medicaid Recoups $8.6M Through Identifying Bad Claims, Fraud
The Mississippi Division of Medicaid recovered more than $8.6 million through audits of its medical claims in the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to a news release from the division Monday. ... The largest agency in the state, Medicaid's budget totals roughly $6 billion including federal dollars. (Wolfe, 8/28)
Des Moines Register: Medicaid Suspends Former Head Of Iowa Agency
The former managing partner at a Polk County home-health agency has been barred from billing Medicaid after being criminally convicted of attempting to defraud taxpayers. Bradley Rogers, 49, of Altoona, headed the Pleasant Hill franchise for the Comfort Keepers home-health agency until late last year and has been suspended from the Medicaid program for five years. According to state records, the Iowa Medicaid Fraud Control Unit discovered in May 2015 that Rogers was submitting falsified time cards to Medicaid in an attempt to artificially inflate Comfort Keepers' expenses. (Kauffman, 8/28)
The CT Mirror: Congress Under Deadline Pressure To Renew Health Plan For 17,000 CT Children
When Congress returns for its break next week it will decide whether to renew a health care program that covers 17,000 Connecticut children under 19. If it doesn’t, Connecticut will be among the first states to feel the impact. (Radelat, 8/29)
