Amid health law expansion, some states trim the Medicaid rolls, By Phil Galewitz, August 18, 2013, Washington Post: “While millions of adults nationwide will gain Medicaid coverage next year under the federal health law, more than 150,000 people could lose their coverage in the state-federal health insurance program for the poor as four states reduce eligibility. The states planning to make the cuts in January are Maine, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and Vermont. Most people losing access to Medicaid will be eligible for federal subsidies to help buy private coverage in the law’s online insurance marketplaces also starting in January, but advocates worry some will struggle to afford higher premiums and other cost-sharing expenses…”
Day: August 20, 2013
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
- California discourages needy from signing up for food stamps, By Evan Halper, August 17, 2013, Los Angeles Times: “It was not surprising that Texas held out. For years, Texas was among a handful of states that required every resident seeking help with grocery bills to first be fingerprinted, an exercise typically associated with criminals. Even though Republican Gov. Rick Perry ultimately got rid of the policy, Texas — always seeking to whittle down ‘big government’ — remains one of the most effective states at keeping its poor out of the giant federal food stamp program. But it is not No. 1. That distinction belongs to California…”
- Food stamp cut backed by Republicans with voters on rolls, By John McCormick and Greg Giroux, August 13, 2013, Bloomberg: “As the U.S. economy recovers from the worst recession since the Great Depression, the explosive growth of food stamps remains a lingering legacy. And now the program comes with an irony, as the Republicans seeking to cut it also represent vast numbers of recipients…”