Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
What's Going Wrong With Medicaid Work Requirements? Dropped Beneficiaries Describe Nightmarish Experiences, Little Guidance
Politico: Conservative Health Care Experiment Leads To Thousands Losing Coverage
Arkansas is throwing thousands of people off its Medicaid rolls each month for not complying with work requirements, blindsiding vulnerable residents panicked about losing their health coverage. Views differ on the fairness of the unprecedented social experiment, but there’s unanimity here that it’s causing confusion. And that’s feeding a philosophical debate about whether low-income adults are ducking the work rules or just can’t navigate the tech-heavy reporting system that goes offline every night at 9 p.m. (Pradhan, 12/30)
Politico: Mississippi’s Republican Governor Quietly Considering Medicaid Expansion
Mississippi’s Republican governor is considering Medicaid expansion, the first sign that long-held GOP opposition could be wilting in the Deep South after an election that was a big winner for the Obamacare program. Republican Gov. Phil Bryant, entering his final year in office, has been engaged in quiet talks about adopting expansion after resisting for years, according to two sources familiar with the discussions. (Demko, 12/22)
Modern Healthcare: 2018 Year In Review: Medicaid Expansion Battle Shifted To Executive Branch, States
With congressional action to repeal the Affordable Care Act off the table in 2018, the Trump administration and the states engaged in a tense tug of war through the year between expanding, not expanding and limiting Medicaid eligibility. The administration in 2018 also proposed penalizing legal immigrants for enrolling in Medicaid and offering states greater flexibility in how they regulate Medicaid managed-care plans. (Meyer, 12/26)
The Associated Press: Paying For Medicaid, Schools Will Be Priority For Lawmakers
Big-dollar decisions about health care and education will top the agenda in many state capitols as lawmakers convene for their 2019 sessions with a closer balance between Republicans and Democrats. Some states will be considering anew whether to expand government-funded health coverage to more people after Democrats put a sizable dent in Republican statehouse dominance during the November elections. Others will be wrestling with how to boost salaries for teachers and funding for their public schools. (Lieb, 12/31)
Detroit Free Press: Work Requirements Approved By Feds For Michigan Medicaid
The Trump administration on Friday approved Michigan's request to require some low-income individuals receiving Medicaid to prove they are working, trying to find work or undergoing training — or risk losing their health care coverage. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) sent Gov. Rick Snyder a letter approving the request, which was part of legislation passed earlier this year by the Republican-dominated state Legislature. Michigan joins seven states to have a work requirement for Medicaid coverage approved by the Trump administration, joining Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, New Hampshire and Wisconsin. Ten other states have applications pending. (Spangler, 12/21)
