Half Of Enrollees In Indiana’s New Medicaid Program Didn’t Make Required Payments
The program, which was set up by former governor Mike Pence, who is now vice president, and consultant Seema Verma, who now heads the agency that runs Medicaid and Medicare, requires people getting benefits to contribute to their premiums if they want the top level of care. State officials said, however, that only a small share of those who missed a payment ended up losing their health care for the state’s required six-month lockout period. News outlets also reported on Medicaid news from Alabama, Kansas and Nevada.
Indianapolis Star:
More Than Half Of Indiana's Alternative Medicaid Recipients Didn't Make Payment Required For Top Service
More than half the low-income people who qualified for Indiana’s alternative Medicaid program failed to make a monthly payment required for the top tier of service — a key feature of the program Vice President Mike Pence insisted on as a condition to expanding the health care program when he was Indiana’s governor. That's according to a new evaluation of the Healthy Indiana Plan, a program designed by Indiana health care consultant Seema Verma, who — as the new administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — can now grant other states permission to impose similar monthly fees. (Groppe, 5/8)
AL.com:
Some Medicaid Mothers Must Wait Weeks, Months Before First Doctor's Visit
[A]ccording to doctors and patients, Alabama's complex maternity Medicaid process can mean some moms don't get their first OBGYN appointment until they're well into their second trimester, 13 or more weeks into their pregnancies. ... Medicaid covers more than half of all births in Alabama -- 52.6 percent. And while most obstetricians prefer to see their patients for their initial exam when they are eight weeks pregnant -- or about four weeks after a woman would get a positive result on an at-home pregnancy test -- Alabama Medicaid has more than six weeks to approve an application once it's filed. At the same time, the percentage of Alabama women receiving adequate prenatal care has dropped in recent decades, from 79 percent in 2003 to 75 percent in 2015, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. (Vollers, 5/8)
KCUR:
Poll Shows Most Kansans Support Medicaid Expansion, But Is It Too Late For This Session?
Another poll has found strong majorities of Kansans support expanding Medicaid, but some political experts say it isn’t likely to make a difference this legislative session. The latest Medicaid expansion poll found about 68 percent of Kansans surveyed said they supported expanding the program to non-disabled adults who earn up to 138 percent of the federal poverty line, or annual income of about $16,600 for an individual and $33,400 for a family of four. About 60 percent of Republicans polled said they also supported expansion. (Wingerter, 5/8)
Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Deficit Smaller Than Expected In Nevada Medicaid Budget
A projected shortfall in Nevada’s general fund Medicaid budget is not as large as previously estimated, a legislative money committee was told Monday.
Assembly Bill 494 asked for $16.4 million to cover an estimated deficit in the Medicaid budget for the fiscal year that ends June 30. ... The state now expects it will only need $4.5 million to cover expenses for the next two months. (Chereb, 5/8)
