Medicaid Expansion Plans, Debates Continue To Roil GOP Officials, Cause Concern For Hospital Execs
News outlets offer updates regarding Medicaid expansion efforts in Indiana and Ohio.
Chicago Sun-Times: Fate Of Indiana's Medicaid Expansion Proposal Still Uncertain
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and federal officials have struggled to come to agreement on the state’s Medicaid expansion proposal — HIP 2.0 — since it was submitted in July. Advocates and stakeholders are worried that drawn-out negotiations could negatively impact 350,000 uninsured Hoosiers. Like many Republican governors and legislators, Pence initially refused to expand Medicaid, but the state would have left $17 billion in federal funds on the table and an increasing number Indiana residents were facing no coverage. HIP 2.0 proposes to replace both traditional Medicaid in Indiana and expand it for non-disabled residents making up 138 percent of poverty level — $16,000 for individuals and $33,000 for families of four. An estimated 350,000 Indiana residents would gain coverage through the expansion (Lazerus, 10/13).
Kaiser Health News: Ohio Medicaid Expansion Faces 2015 Political Hurdle
University Hospitals Chief Executive Tom Zenty warned a Cleveland audience that the state’s Medicaid expansion may not be permanent. “In July of next year, if there is no intervention, Medicaid expansion in the state of Ohio disappears,” Zenty said, during a recent panel discussion. Following the Supreme Court decision about the Affordable Care Act in 2012, states could choose whether they wanted to expand Medicaid (Tribble, 10/14).
In other news related to Medicaid and the health law -
World-Herald News Service: Medicaid Eligibility Expanded In Nebraska For Former Foster Children
A larger group of Nebraskans than originally estimated may benefit from a provision of the Affordable Care Act that grants Medicaid to young adults who had been in foster care. The State of Nebraska conceded last month that it had interpreted the provision too narrowly, and that more former foster individuals should benefit from the health coverage. The uncertainty came about because Nebraska’s age of majority — basically, the age at which a person officially becomes an adult — is 19, not 18, as it is in most states, including Iowa. In question was whether people who left foster care at age 18 in Nebraska would get Medicaid under Obamacare, or if they would have to have exited foster care at age 19. The provision of the law that took effect at the start of this year gives young adults who had been in foster care consideration similar to that of young people who are allowed to remain covered by their parents’ health insurance until 26 years of age (Ruggles, 10/13).
