At Least 25 States Have Cut, Plan To Cut Health Insurance Programs for Low-Income Residents, Report Finds

Officials and lawmakers in at least 25 states have enacted or plan to propose cuts to various state public health services and insurance programs for low-income residents as part of efforts to reduce budget deficits, according to a report to be released on Wednesday by Families USA, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to the report, some states already have reduced their budgets for Medicaid and 12 states have planned cuts to SCHIP. The report estimates that more than 250,000 people will lose their insurance coverage as a result of the cuts that already have been instituted, and "millions more" could be affected by the planned cuts. Some states, including Nevada, are attempting to prevent cuts by reducing payments to physicians and hospitals.

According to the Journal, the states are hoping funds from a federal economic stimulus package will restore some of the funding. The stimulus package, which House members could vote on as early as Wednesday, could include as much as $87 billion over 27 months to help states with their Medicaid programs, the Journal reports. The legislation also is under consideration in some Senate committees. President Obama has said that he wants to sign the legislation by mid-February. However, it is "unclear" if the federal help will be enough to offset Medicaid cost increases as more state residents lose their jobs and enroll in state programs.

The Journal also examined how the economic recession affected Medicaid and other health care spending in Nevada (Zhang, Wall Street Journal, 1/28).