Spending on Medicaid has slowed, survey finds, By Abby Goodnough, October 25, 2012, New York Times: “The annual growth in spending on Medicaid slowed sharply last year as the economy began to improve, a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found. Enrollment in the program grew only modestly as well, but that may change as millions of people are due to become eligible in 2014 under the new national health care law. Medicaid provides health and long-term care coverage to more than 60 million poor people, at a combined cost to the states and federal government of more than $400 billion a year. During the recession, as Americans lost jobs and health insurance, enrollment in the program rose sharply, and states struggled under the weight of its costs…”
Medicaid expansion option would impact tens of thousands in Clark County, but details raise questions, By Kari Bray, October 22, 2012, The Oregonian: “About 20,000 uninsured individuals in Clark County could qualify for Medicaid if Washington state chooses to accept federal funds to expand the program in 2014. However, some legislators have voiced concerns that the state lacks the detail needed to implement the optional Medicaid expansion. The expansion was originally mandatory under the Affordable Care Act, but a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in July resulted in the expansion becoming voluntary…”
Ohio’s high Medicaid cost estimates questioned by some experts, By Kate Irby, October 24, 2012, Cleveland Plain Dealer: “Gov. John Kasich’s administration says it is bracing for a billion-dollar hit. Officials say it’ll come from 400,000 new Medicaid clients in the 24 months after the Affordable Care Act begins requiring most people to have health insurance. These are folks who are currently eligible for Medicaid but have never signed up. Just across the border, however, state Medicaid officials in Indiana and Michigan see things much differently. They expect drastically smaller numbers of people to climb aboard their programs — just 15,000 in Michigan and 92,000 in Indiana — when the so-called individual mandate for health coverage begins in 2014…”
Deal may reinstate Pa. residents dropped from Medicaid, By Aubrey Whelan, October 24, 2012, Philadelphia Inquirer: “More than 100,000 Pennsylvanians who lost Medicaid benefits last year can reapply within the next 30 days, thanks to a settlement between a Philadelphia legal team and the state Department of Public Welfare. Applicants who lost their benefits last year and incurred medical bills could see those bills resolved if the state determines they were eligible for Medicaid all along. Last year, DPW identified about 385,000 households that were overdue for redetermination – in other words, the agency needed to check whether those recipients were still eligible for Medicaid…”
Cuomo’s Medicaid changes are at Washington’s mercy, By Nina Bernstein, October 23, 2012, New York Times: “Depending on who is doing the talking these days, New York State is either a national model of how to curb Medicaid spending, or the nation’s prime example of Medicaid abuse. Now billions of dollars in state revenue may ride on which image prevails, as presidential politics puts a new spotlight on the joint federal and state spending program for care of the disabled, the elderly and the poor. No state spends more Medicaid money than New York — $54 billion a year. But Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, a Democrat, persuaded health care providers and major health worker unions to live within a strict Medicaid spending limit last year, and to accept an ambitious Medicaid redesign that promises better health outcomes at a lower cost…”
Futures uncertain for those aging out of child welfare system, By JoAnne Young, October 25, 2012, Lincoln Journal Star: “Reba Payne and several of her six siblings entered the child welfare system just after she turned 15. Now 17, she found herself testifying in front of a panel of state senators Thursday about what it means to age out of the foster care system in Nebraska. In her case, that will be in a year, when she is in the first semester of her senior year in high school. Nineteen-year-old John Thompson left the system a month ago after having been a state ward since age 12. He spoke at a news conference just before Thursday’s hearing on the foster care interim study (LR537) introduced by Lincoln Sen. Amanda McGill. When Thompson left the system, he said, he didn’t feel ready to be on his own and didn’t have many resources. He didn’t know how to get through a job interview, and he was trying to figure out how to resurrect all the advice he had received over the years from judges, counselors and others in the system…”
State aims to fix ‘fragmented’ health care system for kids, By Erin Toner, October 22, 2012, Milwaukee Public Radio: “The state of Wisconsin says it will soon roll out a new health care system for children in foster care. They often have far more serious medical and mental health needs than peers, yet people involved with the children say, too often, their needs are not met. In the first of a two-part series, WUWM’s Erin Toner reports on a big shortcoming of the current health care system for foster children – their medical records are scattered and incomplete. What the state plans to do to address the problem, is create for each child, a ‘medical home…'”
New health care model for kids seeks to better identify abuse, neglect, By Erin Toner, October 23, 2012, Milwaukee Public Radio: “We now continue our series on Wisconsin’s efforts to improve the health of children in foster care. Child welfare officials admit the existing system is not meeting many kids’ needs. As we reported Tuesday, the children’s health records are often incomplete and scattered among the many caregivers and doctors who’ve passed through the kids’ lives. To address the problem, the state plans to roll out a ‘medical home’ program that would centralize each child’s care. Today, WUWM’s Erin Toner highlights another state initiative – a sharper focus on helping children heal from trauma and abuse…”
