Pennsylvania Medicaid Expansion Waiver Now Open for Public Comment

It’s official! Pennsylvania’s Section 1115 Medicaid Research and Demonstration waiver application has been certified as complete by the federal government and is now open for a 30-day comment period.   This is basically the list of concessions Governor Corbett wants from CMS in exchange for accepting ACA Medicaid funding to cover more uninsured Pennsylvanians.

The proposal includes a few changes from the version that was sent out for comment at the state level, but remains similar in its original conception: accept federal Medicaid funds for the newly eligible, put them all in “private plans,” and condition eligibility on participation in work search and wellness activities.  Premiums would apply for those above poverty, and wraparound benefits would be waived under the proposed waiver.  And while the state is in the neighborhood, it also wants to visit existing beneficiaries and cut their benefits.

So, there is plenty to say about this one and we are developing detailed comments along with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. We will post them here at Say Ahhh! when they are ready. In the meantime, the federal website offers an easy, but extremely limited way to submit short comments. It certainly can’t handle all of our thoughts because of the character limit, so, we will have to send ours in the old-fashioned way.

Joan Alker is the Executive Director of the Center for Children and Families and a Research Professor at the Georgetown McCourt School of Public Policy.

Latest