Latest Morning Briefing Stories
Progress, Challenges As Medicaid Rolls Swell in Wash.
One of the most successful initiatives in the Affordable Care Act has been the effort to sign up patients to be covered by Medicaid under an expanded program. Now comes the hard part: facing up to challenges brought on by having so many more people in the program.
Adding Dental Care Contrasts With Mo. Legislature’s Opposition To Medicaid Expansion
Some of Missouri’s working poor have had no dental coverage since benefits were cut in 2005.
States Battle Asthma as Numbers Grow
With a climate especially bad for asthmatics, Missouri has been a pioneer in fighting the disease.
Kit Bond Works Missouri Capitol’s Halls On Medicaid Expansion
The former governor has been meeting with legislators, some of whom weren’t born when he first came to Jefferson City as state auditor in 1970.
What Happens Next On The Health Law?
As the first open enrollment period draws to a close, here are seven things to watch for clues about what the health law’s future might hold.
Nearly 1 Million More Sign Up For Obamacare Plans In February
But the number of enrollees, especially those between 18 and 34, continues to lag expectations.
IG Report Findings Could Strengthen Nursing Home Inspections
Nursing home oversight may be moving toward more effective ways to detect poor care.
Tough Road for States Seeking Customized Medicaid Expansion
Each of the states currently weighing expansion of Medicaid has a different idea of what it would look like.
There’s a Life-Saving Hepatitis C Drug. But You May Not Be Able To Afford It.
The price tag of the breakthrough treatment raises questions about the proper costs of pharmaceuticals.
Could Medicaid Expansion Debate Turn Into An Immigration Issue?
Proponents of expanding Medicaid in Florida argue that a ‘no’ vote means that legal immigrants will have access to insurance subsidies while some U.S. citizens go without coverage.
Medicare Data Show Wide Differences In ACOs’ Patient Care
The first public evaluation of how 141 networks of doctors and hospitals performed looks at five quality measures for patients with diabetes and heart disease.
Health Centers See Threat From ‘Private Option’ Medicaid
Shifting Medicaid enrollees into private plans could mean less money for clinics treating the poor.
Corbett’s Final Medicaid Expansion Plan: Gentler, But Still An Outlier
The plan by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett would use federal money to buy private insurance for newly eligible Medicaid enrollees and require work searches or job training.
Missouri House Republican Files Medicaid Expansion Bill
A Republican House member has filed a bill to expand Missouri’s Medicaid program.
Dental Services Are Coming Back For California’s Low-Income Adults
Patients face serious challenges, however, including a shortage of dentists and restrictions on treatment options.
Florida Moves To Manage Health Care For Foster Kids
Plan seeks to close gaps for more than 30,000 kids in the state’s child welfare system.
Regional Breakdown Of Florida Children Eligible For New Managed Care Plan
The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration’s Statewide Medicaid Managed Care Map shows there are 31,600 children eligible for the new specialty plan designed for those in the child welfare system across 11 regions.
States Accelerate Shift Of Nursing Home Residents Into Medicaid Managed Care
Insurers say that safety is their No.1 concern, but consumer advocates and nursing home owners are wary.
Gov. Beebe: ‘It’s Ideology Versus Pragmatism’
Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe discusses his state’s experiment expanding Medicaid using a so-called “private option” strategy.
Arkansas’ Medicaid Experiment, Key To Obamacare Expansion, On Ropes
A decision to end the plan would cost tens of thousands of enrollees their coverage and have a chilling effect on other states.
