Illinois Officials Reach Deal To Borrow Up To $1.5 Billion To Pay Overdue Medicaid Reimbursements

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) on April 17 reached a tentative agreement with state Comptroller Dan Hynes (D) and state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka (R) to borrow several hundred million dollars to help pay overdue Medicaid reimbursements to hospitals, pharmacies, nursing homes and other providers, the Chicago Tribune reports. The three have not yet agreed on how much to borrow; Blagojevich and Hynes want to borrow $1.5 billion that would also help pay income tax refunds and state aid payments to schools, but Topinka has agreed to borrow only the $750 million needed to cover Medicaid reimbursements. State officials said they are on average 90 days behind in paying Medicaid providers, and the late payments have caused many providers to deny Medicaid beneficiaries drugs and outpatient services, the Tribune reports. "In the last month, we have probably turned away a dozen people. They might have had to drive an hour to find a Wal-Mart or a Walgreens," Warren Winston, a pharmacist at Carthage, Ill.-based Sherrick Drug & Medical, which the state owes $130,000 in Medicaid reimbursements, said. "If the cash starts flowing, we will start servicing more people," Winston added (Long/Japsen, Chicago Tribune, 4/18).