State lawmakers faced with a massive budget crisis will soon debate a first-in-the-nation plan to change Rhode Island’s Medicaid system, a proposal that would steer hundreds of elderly people away from nursing homes and reduce medical services for the poor.
Gov. Don Carcieri, a Republican, reached the deal with President George W. Bush’s administration Friday, just weeks before the head of state leaves office. Lawmakers in the Democratic-dominated General Assembly have less than a month to decide whether to accept or reject it.
The plan would set a $12 billion spending cap on the state Medicaid program for the elderly, poor and disabled. Right now, the U.S. government reimburses the state more than 50 cents for every dollar spent on Medicaid expenses.