Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CMS Chief Pledges To Bring A Rural Health Lens To All Agency Policies
Modern Healthcare: Verma's Promise To Rural Providers: You Come First
CMS Administrator Seema Verma on Tuesday promised rural health industry stakeholders that their needs are being heard, saying any new policy idea proposed to the agency must demonstrably impact rural healthcare. "We are bringing a rural health lens to all of CMS' programs and policies," Verma said to a crowd of rural providers and plans who are in Washington this week to lobby Capitol Hill lawmakers as part of the National Rural Health Association's Policy Institute. (Luthi, 2/6)
The Associated Press: Louisiana Medicaid Program Spending Less Than Expected
Louisiana continues to spend more slowly than expected on Medicaid services, a pace projected to leave the state with $26 million in savings this budget year. The latest Medicaid forecast, released Tuesday, shows the $12.5 billion program is expected to spend as much as $612 million less than estimated for the financial year that ends June 30. (2/7)
The Associated Press: Miss. Senate Votes 31-16 On Senate Bill 2836, Medicaid Alive For Now
A proposal to keep Mississippi's Medicaid program alive is advancing in the Legislature. Senators voted 31-16 Tuesday to pass Senate Bill 2836, with most Republicans supporting it and most Democrats opposing it. The bill goes to the House for more work. (2/6)
The Baltimore Sun: Legislation Would Add Dental Benefits For Maryland Medicaid Recipients
Aaron Isle of Baltimore knows what it’s like to have a severe toothache but not to have the money to get it treated. Isle, 38, works in the restaurant industry, sometimes as a server, sometimes as a bartender or manager. His current job offers no medical benefits, so he depends on the state’s Medicaid program for health insurance, but Maryland provides little or no dental coverage for adults. (Dresser, 2/7)
The Salt Lake Tribune: Lawmaker Pulls Plan To Delay Medicaid, CHIP Coverage For New Immigrants; Poll Shows Most Utahns Opposed Mandating Such A Wait
Sen. Allen Christensen says he is withdrawing legislation that sought to require legal immigrants to reside in the state five years before they could qualify for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). He had said his SB48 aimed to encourage self-reliance and to curb creeping “socialism.” But critics called it a mean-spirited attack against new legal immigrants, who are mostly Latino. “I just didn’t have the political support I need for it,” Christensen, R-North Ogden, said this week. (Davidson, 2/6)
Winston-Salem Journal: Groups: Medicaid Expansion Could Lower Baby-Death Rates
A state child advocacy group has added its voice to those urging the Republican-controlled legislature to expand Medicaid to more than 500,000 North Carolinians. States that have expanded Medicaid have a lower infant mortality rate than those who haven’t, NC Child said in a 2016 report. An update of that report, which was scheduled to be released today, focuses on fetal mortality, which is defined as the death of a fetus that occurs at 20 or more weeks of gestation. (Craver, 2/7)
