Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Seema Verma's 'Street Credibility' Helps As She Lobbies Senate For Obamacare Replacement
The Wall Street Journal: GOP Floats Proposal To Ease Medicaid Cuts
Senate Republicans, scrambling to win support for their health-care bill, pushed a measure Thursday that they said could ease the impact of the bill’s Medicaid cuts on low-income people. Advocating for the new direction is a little-known health official who is now at the center of the health-care fight: Seema Verma, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees the two federal medical programs. (Radnofsky and Peterson, 7/20)
Politico: Pence Ally Emerges As Key Proponent Of Obamacare Repeal
A Medicaid expert and close associate of Vice President Mike Pence has emerged as one of the most influential advocates of the Obamacare repeal effort. Seema Verma, who runs Medicare and Medicaid for the Trump administration, keeps a low public profile, but behind the scenes, she’s been guiding skeptical Republican senators and governors through the Obamacare repeal proposals and reassuring them that their states will do just fine under the new Medicaid financing system it envisions. (Haberkorn and Pradhan, 7/21)
NPR: Opioid Treatment Fund In GOP Bill Would Leave Many Untreated
At a lunch on Wednesday, President Trump tried to persuade some reluctant senators to endorse repealing the Affordable Care Act. During the meeting, he mentioned a provision in the Senate Republican proposal that allocates funding for opioid treatment, saying, "We're committing $45 billion to help combat the opioid epidemic, and some states in particular like that." But addiction treatment specialists warn that sum of money is far from enough to address a crisis that has escalated across the United States in recent years, killing tens of thousands of people. (Allen, 7/20)
KQED: Sighs Of Relief From Health Safety-Net Providers In California After Senate Bill Collapses
Health care workers at California hospitals and clinics that serve low-income patients are relieved but still wary after the collapse of the Senate Republican health care bill earlier this week. The bill proposed deep funding cuts to Medicaid, which is called Medi-Cal in California and covers one out of three state residents. (Klivans, 7/20)
Georgia Health News: Ga. Schools Would Be Vulnerable To Medicaid Cuts, Survey Says
A new survey finds that many Georgia school systems fear that the proposed Medicaid cuts in Congress would hurt their special education programs – and the children they serve. Most school districts responding to the survey say they receive thousands of dollars in Medicaid funding to help offset the costs of their special education programs. (Miller, 7/20)
And in state Medicaid news —
Omaha World-Herald: Nebraska Hospitals Upset Over Decisions By Medicaid Officials That Will Cost Them $21 Million A Year In Funding
Nebraska hospitals are crying foul over a pair of recent decisions by state Medicaid officials that are hurting hospital finances. One saddled hospitals with the biggest share of budget-cutting payment changes. The other left in place errors in the Medicaid hospital payment formula that date to 2014. Together, the decisions will cost hospitals more than $21 million a year in state and federal funds, with most of the impact falling on the 27 largest hospitals. (Stoddard, 7/21)
