During Senate Hearing, State Officials Detail How Medicaid Budget Problems Would Hurt Seniors

State officials and advocates testifying before the Senate Special Committee on Aging on March 14 said that if the federal government does not reform Medicaid, particularly the way it pays for the costs of caring for seniors dually eligible for Medicare, states' budget problems will worsen, BNA News Health Care Daily Report reports. Low-income seniors who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid benefits account for 30% of Medicaid spending and 16% of the program's beneficiaries. Many states are grappling with budget deficits in their Medicaid programs, and some have considered scaling back services and benefits, which would affect elderly beneficiaries. For example, Karl Klutz, director of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, told committee members that the state is planning to control pharmaceutical spending by reducing the payments pharmacies receive, increasing audits of pharmacy claims, requiring prior authorization for more than four prescriptions and prohibiting refills before three-quarters of a prescription is used. Idaho seniors account for 25% of Medicaid drug costs in the state. But even though states have asked the federal government for assistance with Medicaid, states are not paying "their fair share" of the costs of long-term care under Medicaid, the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging said in a statement. The group added, "State governments are balancing their budgets on the backs of the frail elderly -- proposing strategies to reduce their Medicaid expenditures. Funds must be adequate to ensure quality across the full continuum of long-term care." The group also objected to plans by some states to cut Medicaid provider payments by 8% to 15% and to tighten Medicaid eligibility (Combs, BNA News Health Care Daily Report, 3/15). A HealthCast of this hearing is available online.