Bangor Daily News Three-Part Series Examines Potential Effects of Maine Governor’s Proposed Health Care Cuts

Cuts to many of Maine's health programs, as proposed by Gov. Angus King's (I) to balance the state's budget for the current two-year cycle would "threaten" services for many low-income residents, the Bangor Daily News reports (Moore, Bangor Daily News, 2/19). The cuts include $2.9 million from mental health community services, such as outpatient and residential services, transportation and social clubs; $1.9 million from children's mental health services, such as social programs and case management; $1 million in Medicaid reimbursements to physicians; $2 million in special Medicaid rates for group homes; and $4.2 million in special Medicaid rates for nursing homes ( Portland Press Herald, 2/18). The Daily News this week ran a three-part series focusing on how specific programs might be affected by the cuts.

• "Fearing the Future": At Together Place, a Bangor social club for the mentally ill and mentally retarded, the proposed cuts would be "deeply harmful" to a center with "few resources to fall back on," according to Robert Mathien, executive director of Maine Mental Health Connections, a not-for-profit organization that runs the club. Services at the club, which include entertainment, spiritual support and an inexpensive snack bar, would have to be "trimmed" by $9,000, Mathien said, probably through a reduction of staff (Bangor Daily News, 2/19).
• "Bracing for 'Ripple Effect'": The proposed cuts would "ripple" down and likely reduce "vital" Medicaid reimbursements at rural hospitals, which treat a larger percentage of low-income patients than larger, urban hospitals. Richard Waller, CEO of Millinocket Regional Hospital, said that the cuts "would only make things more difficult for rural hospitals" which are already "operating at a loss," according to Ralph Gabarro, CEO of Mayo Regional Hospital (Dowd, Bangor Daily News, 2/20).
• "Taking Back Her Life": The Daily News profiles Maureen Fortin, a 40-year-old Bangor woman with mental illness who "worrie[s]" that the proposed Medicaid cuts will eliminate many services she uses, including counseling, transportation assistance and special funds for loans. Fortin says that "King lives in an ivory tower," and if programs are eliminated, "she doesn't know what she'd do" (Moore, Bangor Daily News, 2/21).