Louisiana Hospital Task Force Urges State to Expand Medicaid Eligibility, Increase Provider Rates

Louisiana "could have a healthier population" if state officials would "re-evaluate" Medicaid spending in order to expand the program's eligibility requirements, a study by the Louisiana Hospitals' Medicaid Task Force has found, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. The task force, which is sponsored by the Louisiana Hospital Association and the Metropolitan Hospital Council of New Orleans, noted that "unworkable financial requirements" prevent many from qualifying for Medicaid coverage, even though the state has one of the highest rates of low-income and uninsured residents in the country -- 18% of state residents have incomes at or below the federal poverty line. Under current eligibility rules, many adults who are not pregnant or disabled cannot qualify for Medicaid coverage if they earn more than about $3,500 a year (Ritea, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/14).

Other Recommendations
In addition to suggesting expanded eligibility, the report said Disproportionate Share Hospital payments -- intended to reimburse hospitals serving large numbers of uninsured and Medicaid patients -- are "inadequate" and should be "redistribut[ed]." Currently, most of these payments go toward charity care at the Louisiana State University Hospital System, while a "minimal" amount of funding reimburses care at private hospitals. As a result, such hospitals have less incentive to provide non-emergency indigent care. The task force also recommended increasing physician fees to "stimulate" participation in the program, noting that reimbursement levels are so low that only 36% of doctors treating Medicaid patients filed claims last year (AP/New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/13). According to the report, the state should also spend more to hire additional workers to "help enroll" people in Medicaid. To fund the recommendations, the report said the state should dedicate one cent of an existing four-cent food and utility tax toward "improving health care."

Hood Agrees With Findings
State Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary David Hood said that while he would leave the tax debate to the state Legislature, he "mostly agreed" with the report's suggestions (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/14). He added that the report "match[ed]" his plans to redesign DHH to improve access to primary care, invest in community-based care and reduce reliance on emergency rooms for treatment (AP/New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/13). "We worked closely with the LHA on this, and what they're recommending here is very much in line with what we're trying to achieve as well," Hood said (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 11/14).