Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Highlights Health Care-Related Funding in Delaware, Georgia Budget Proposals

The governors of Delaware and Georgia recently released their fiscal year 2009 state budget proposals. Summaries of health-related budget issues appear below.

• Delaware: Gov. Ruth Ann Minner (D) on Thursday proposed a $3.4 billion operating budget for the next fiscal year that includes additional spending on Medicaid, the Wilmington News Journal reports. The proposed budget is 3.81% higher than the budget for the current fiscal year, which ends on June 30. According to the News Journal, "Much of the increase in the proposed budget is attributable to higher costs for Medicaid and higher public school enrollment" (Miller, Wilmington News Journal, 1/24).
  
  
• Georgia: Gov. Sonny Perdue (R) recently proposed a $21.4 billion budget for FY 2009 that includes increases in Medicaid payments to physicians and hospitals, the Macon Telegraph reports. The state currently reimburses physicians for 84.6% of costs they incur while treating Medicaid beneficiaries based on federal data from 2000. The proposed budget would increase the rate to 88.5% based on 2007 cost data. Hospitals in the state's trauma network would receive 100% funding for outpatient costs and 98.6% for inpatient costs, up from 95.1%. Other hospital payments would increase from 90.1% of inpatient costs to 92.6%. Perdue's proposed budget would reduce funding for the Department of Community Health to $126 million. Including federal and other revenue, funding for the department would total $285 million FY 2009, which is $2 million less than this fiscal year (Billips, Macon Telegraph, 1/26).