Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Companies Managing Iowa's Medicaid Program Continue To Lose Money
Des Moines Register: Medicaid Management Firms Continue To Lose Millions
The three for-profit companies managing Iowa’s Medicaid program continue to lose tens of millions of dollars on the project, a report released Wednesday shows. The companies, Amerigroup, AmeriHealth Caritas and UnitedHealthcare, reported losses ranging from 18 percent to 25 percent for the three months ending in September. The firms took over management of Iowa’s $4 billion Medicaid program last year in a controversial shift ordered by Gov. Terry Branstad. (Leys, 11/30)
Pioneer Press: Thousands On Medicaid, MinnesotaCare To Switch Plans As Medica Drops Contract
More than 300,000 Minnesotans on public health programs could have to switch to a new plan next year after insurer Medica couldn’t agree on a new contract with the state of Minnesota. The move is fallout from last year, when Minnesota for the first time issued contracts to manage Medicaid and MinnesotaCare plans based on competitive bidding. Medica was among the carriers submitting winning bids — bids far below what the state paid in previous years. As a result of the low bids, officials forecast savings to taxpayers of about $450 million in the first year alone. (Montgomery, 12/1)
Richmond Times Dispatch: Saslaw Says Coal Jobs Are Not Coming Back; Stanley Says Medicaid Expansion Is Dead
Coal jobs are not coming back to Southwest Virginia, according to a Democratic legislative leader — and the prospects of Medicaid expansion in Virginia are similarly dire, a Republican leader said Thursday. But lawmakers from both parties say they recognize the need for economic development in some of the state’s most depressed regions and the importance of working to fill any coverage gap that could open if the Trump administration succeeds in repealing the Affordable Care Act. (Nolan, 12/1)
Kaiser Health News: Medicaid Is Balm And Benefit For Victims Of Gun Violence
Kenneth Berry can feel the bullets in his body move. One jiggles down his leg toward his ankle; another presses on his sciatic nerve; a third has migrated to his hip. The three bullets have been inside Berry, 41, for more than two decades, pumped into him when he was a teenager near St. Louis. Now, after years without health coverage, besieged by untreated nerve pain and hunched over a cane, he finally has the golden ticket to get the medical procedures that will bring relief: a Medicaid card. (Varney, 12/2)
