Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'This Letter Is Scary': Louisiana Medicaid Recipients To Be Sent Official Notices That They Could Lose Benefits
New Orleans Times-Picayune: Louisiana Following Through With Warnings To 37,000 Medicaid Recipients
The Louisiana Department of Health will send official notifications Thursday (May 10) to 37,000 elderly and disabled Medicaid recipients who could lose their benefits that pay for nursing homes and home care on July 1. "This letter is scary, but it's not a tactic," said Jay Dardenne, commissioner of administration and chief budget officer for the governor. "I would imagine there is going to be an extreme, adverse reaction from anyone who gets this letter and I don't blame them." (O'Donoghue, 5/9)
Stat: Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Fine Drug Makers For Incorrect Medicaid Classifications
A pair of lawmakers has introduced a bill that would allow the federal government to fine drug makers for providing incorrect information to Medicaid for calculating rebates the companies must pay to the health care program. The bill would require a drug maker to correct any misclassifications within 30 days of being notified by the government or face a penalty of $100,000 a day for every day a correction is not made. (Silverman, 5/9)
And in other Medicaid news —
Minnesota Public Radio: Minn. Children's Mental Health Facilities Forced To Adapt Or Cut Back To Stay Open
Nearly a dozen residential treatment centers for children who suffer from mental illness are scrambling to find new funding after receiving word this week that they're no longer eligible for federal Medicaid dollars. Some of the centers are changing their model of care in order to stay open. (Sepic, 5/10)
Kansas City Star: KanCare Audit Stymied By Poor Data From KDHE, MCOs
In an email, Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Jeff Andersen said the agency disputed some of the auditors' conclusions about KanCare's effect on Medicaid costs, which he said didn't take into the effect of state and federal policy changes. But he didn't dispute their conclusions about the shortcomings of the data on patient outcomes, which he said he became aware of after he was appointed in January. (Marso, 5/9)
