Medicaid and the Uninsured: Jan. 26, 2023

Wave of Rural Nursing Home Closures Grows Amid Staffing Crunch
By Tony Leys Many small-town care facilities that remain open are limiting admissions, citing a lack of staff, while a wave of others shutter. That means more patients are marooned in hospitals or placed far away from their families.

Medicaid and Abortion Top Health Agenda for Montana Lawmakers
By Keely Larson State lawmakers say their health care goals for the new legislative session are to lower costs and improve access to care. They’ll have to grapple with a full slate of other issues, as well.

As States Seek to Limit Abortions, Montana Wants to Redefine What Is Medically Necessary
By Katheryn Houghton Montana officials are looking to tighten rules around medically necessary abortions for those who use Medicaid as their health insurance. Reproductive health advocates and Democratic lawmakers have said the move is part of a broader agenda to whittle away access to the procedure.

Numbers Don’t Lie. Biden Kept His Promise on Improving Obamacare.
By Julie Appleby KHN has teamed up with our partners at PolitiFact to monitor 100 key promises made by Joe Biden during the 2020 presidential campaign — including those surrounding the Affordable Care Act.

Many Families With Unaffordable Employer Coverage Now Eligible for Covered California Subsidies
By Bernard J. Wolfson If family coverage on an employer-sponsored plan is too expensive, a worker’s spouse and dependents may be eligible for Affordable Care Act subsidies under a new federal rule.

California Senate’s New Health Chair to Prioritize Mental Health and Homelessness
By Rachel Bluth California state Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman of Stockton has been appointed chair of the Senate’s influential health committee. A licensed social worker, Eggman said she will make mental health care and homelessness front-burner issues.