State Highlights: Va. Budget And New Mental Illness Money; Medicaid Dilemmas In Rhode Island, Ohio
A selection of health policy stories from Massachusetts, Virginia, Rhode Island, Ohio, Kansas and Arkansas.
The Washington Post:
Va. House GOP Budget Plan To Include Health Funds For Mentally Ill, Poor
House Republicans announced Thursday that their state budget plan will include $124 million for mental-health care and health services for the poor — slightly more than the money proposed last fall by Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D). The move reflects a bid by the GOP to build on mental-health reforms begun after a tragedy involving a senator’s son and to shake off the “party of no” label Democrats have lobbed at them for rejecting McAuliffe’s big push to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. (Vozzella, 2/5)
Providence Journal:
Growth In Medicaid Costs A Budget-Cutting Dilemma For R.I. Assembly
Rhode Island faces a very human, budget-cutting dilemma as it tries to close a projected deficit that has been estimated at anywhere from $166.6 million to $200 million. The dilemma? One-fourth of Rhode Island’s residents receive Medicaid. The last time anyone counted, Rhode Island’s cost per Medicaid enrollee was 31 percent higher than the national average, at $9,541 per person. The state’s total Medicaid tab was $1.78 billion during the 12 months that ended on June 30, 2013. Since then, it has ballooned by close to $1 billion more. (Gregg, 2/5)
Columbus Dispatch:
Medicaid Could Dump 500,000 Ohioans In 6 Months
The state will send out letters to 107,000 Medicaid recipients today telling them that their health-care benefits will be terminated on Feb. 28 for failure to verify their income. ... An additional 140,000 recipients will receive termination notices next week, with 100,000 scheduled for March. The Ohio Job and Family Services Association and advocates for the poor have urged state officials to delay terminating benefits because fewer than half of those sent renewal notifications in December have responded, and many never received them. (Candisky, 2/6)
WBUR:
New Partners CEO Says He Will Explore Expanding Outside Of Mass.
The incoming CEO at Partners HealthCare says the network will continue to expand, but not necessarily in Massachusetts. (Bebinger, 2/5)
The Boston Globe:
Health Care Costs Forecast To Rise 7 Percent
Health care costs are projected to increase by about 7 percent this year, making it likely that employers will try to control expenses by changing benefits, increasing deductibles, and otherwise shifting more costs to their workers, the state’s health insurance companies said Thursday. (Fernandes, 2/5)
The Boston Globe:
Major Mass. Health Plans OK Methadone Treatment
Major Massachusetts health plans covering 2.6 million residents announced Thursday they will cover treatment with the drug methadone by July 1, in an effort to address the epidemic of addiction to opiate drugs. (Johnson, 2/6)
The Kansas Health Institute's News Service:
Kansas State Hospital May Lose Medicare Payments Over Deficiencies In Medication Management
For the second time in three months, federal officials have notified Osawatomie State Hospital that it’s on the brink of losing its Medicare payments because it is out of compliance with health and safety standards. The latest warning, issued Jan. 30, stemmed from a Jan. 23 inspection that resulted in the hospital being cited for deficiencies in medication management and infection control, and for not doing enough to prevent suicidal patients from hanging themselves. (Ranney, 2/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Arkansas Reaches Settlement In Cystic Fibrosis Drug Suit
Arkansas Medicaid officials have reached a legal settlement to resolve claims the state denied patients a cystic fibrosis therapy made by Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. due to its cost. In a lawsuit filed in federal court last year, three patients alleged the state had for two years violated their civil rights by denying them the drug, Kalydeco, which has an annual wholesale price of $311,000. (Walker, 2/5)
