Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Wis. Committee Approves Gov. Walker's Plan To Test Some Medicaid Enrollees For Drugs
The Associated Press: Walker's Medicaid Drug-Testing Wins Approval
Gov. Scott Walker's proposal making Wisconsin the first state to require drug tests to receive Medicaid health benefits has won approval from the Legislature's budget-writing committee. The Joint Finance Committee on Thursday voted to give itself oversight and final approval on Walker's plans to drug-test able-bodied, childless adult Medicaid applicants. There would also be a drug test requirement for food stamp recipients. Democratic opponents argue the drug testing would be unconstitutional. (5/25)
Madison (Wis.) Capital Times: Budget Committee Approves Scott Walker's Plan To Drug Test Some Medicaid Recipients
Lawmakers voted to allow Walker to seek a federal waiver for the program, but the program could not be enacted without approval from the Joint Finance Committee. The committee would also have the authority to modify the waiver. (Opoien, 5/25)
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Wisconsin GOP Advances Measure That Would Make State First To Drug Test For Health Benefits
The GOP governor says his proposals only apply to able-bodied adults and offer training for the jobless and treatment for those who are on drugs. Critics say they will cost taxpayers more than they save, trigger costly lawsuits and fail to boost the state’s economy the way other investments might. (Stein, 5/25)
The proposal in Wisconsin is one of a number of conservative proposals to modify Medicaid being considered in states.
The Washington Post: At Trump’s Urging, States Try To Tilt Medicaid In Conservative Directions
Wisconsin is preparing to recast its Medicaid program in ways that no state has ever done, requiring low-income adults to undergo drug screening to qualify for health coverage and setting time limits on assistance unless they work or train for a job. The approach places BadgerCare, as the Wisconsin version of Medicaid is known, at the forefront of a movement by Republican governors and legislatures that is injecting a brand of moralism and individual responsibility into the nation’s largest source of public health insurance. (Goldstein and Eilperin, 5/25)
