- GOP puts BadgerCare, federal health care law in the cross hairs, By Mary Spicuzza, December 2, 2010, Wisconsin State Journal: “After rate hikes made paying for private health insurance impossible, Jim Phillips spent four uninsured years avoiding trips to the doctor’s office. Last year, the Monona small-business owner signed up for one of the state’s health insurance plans, known as BadgerCare Plus. Phillips, a 58-year-old hair stylist, has since had stomach problems he says would have left him $10,000 to $15,000 in debt if he had no insurance. ‘It would affect everything,’ he said. ‘It would affect how I pay my rent, buy groceries, work at the salon. It would be difficult to pay all the medical bills.’ Now Phillips worries he will lose his insurance if Gov.-elect Scott Walker and the Legislature’s majority Republicans, who frequently railed against ‘government-run health care’ during their campaigns, follow through on plans to make changes to BadgerCare and stop implementation of federal health care reforms in the state. For years, Wisconsin has been considered a national health care leader, expanding services and Medicaid programs far beyond federal requirements under Democratic and Republican governors alike. But in the face of a budget deficit that could top $3 billion over the next two years, Republican leaders say everything needs to be on the table for cuts – including the 9 percent of the budget that goes toward Medical Assistance programs…”
- Rising Medicaid costs mean service cuts likely, By Ken Kusmer (AP), December 1, 2010, Chicago Tribune: “Indiana lawmakers likely will cut some Medicaid-provided services in the upcoming legislative session after learning Wednesday that the state’s share of government health insurance program costs will balloon by $1.1 billion over the next two years unless checked. The federal government pays about two-thirds of Indiana’s Medicaid costs, but human services chief Michael Gargano told the State Budget Committee that the state’s share has been growing by more than 10 percent each year. He said that’s because the recession has made more people eligible for Medicaid, which serves those who are needy and disabled. Gargano, secretary of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, asked for an additional $900 million in state Medicaid funds over the two-year period starting next July 1. He recommended the General Assembly rein in the costs by cutting some optional services the state currently provides…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty