coronavirus
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Here’s how much for-profit hospitals have received in bailout funding so far
Healthcare Dive By: Samantha Liss The nation’s largest for-profit hospital chains have received a total of about $2.2 billion in federal grants so far, which is intended to provide financial relief to hospitals and providers amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus and the havoc it has wreaked on their operations… “Nothing has been targeted…
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Medicaid Work Requirements: News from the Litigation Front
It has been obvious for several months that the wheels have come off the Medicaid work requirements bus. The Secretary of HHS has approved “demonstrations” of work requirements in nine states; none of these states is currently implementing. And no state that accepts the 6.2 percentage point increase in its federal Medicaid matching rate made…
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Deadlines for laid-off workers to get health care coverage coming next week
CBS News The first deadlines to qualify for fallback coverage under the Affordable Care Act are looming for many laid-off workers who lost their health insurance in the coronavirus shutdown… The federal-state Children’s Health Insurance Program and Medicaid cover kids in families with incomes well above the poverty level. “Medicaid is open year round if…
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Child vaccinations down across the country amid coronavirus fears
ABC News By: John Santucci, Katherine Faulders, Olivia Rubin, Jay Bhatt, and Allison Pecorin As many as 20 states across the country are reporting a rapid decrease in the number of children receiving their routine vaccinations over the past few months, according to a nationwide survey conducted by ABC News. … Joan Alker, the executive…
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Children’s hospitals ask feds for more money amid ‘catastrophic loss’ due to coronavirus
ABC News By: Olivia Rubin The leaders of over 75 children’s hospitals across the country on Monday asked the federal government for more funding to help sustain their operations and offset the “catastrophic loss” they said they have faced during the coronavirus pandemic. … Generally speaking, Joan Alker, the Executive Director of the Center for Children…
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Medicaid Clinics And Doctors Have Been Last In Line For COVID-19 Relief Funding
NPR By: Julie Rovner Casa de Salud, a nonprofit clinic in Albuquerque, N.M., provides primary medical care, opioid addiction services and non-Western therapies, including acupuncture and reiki, to a largely low-income population. And as with so many other health care institutions that serve as a safety net, this clinic’s revenue — and its future —…
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Governors eye Medicaid cuts to ease COVID-19 budget pain
The Hill By: Jessie Hellmann Governors facing huge budget shortfalls are eyeing cuts to Medicaid, even as millions of unemployed Americans flock to the health insurance program after losing their employer-based coverage.States that are buckling under declining revenues and increased Medicaid enrollment due to COVID-19 say they may have no choice but to cut the…
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Increased CHIP Matching Rates under House-Passed HEROES Act
The House-passed HEROES Act (H.R. 6800) would provide an additional one-year increase to the federal Medicaid matching rate (from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021), on top of the FMAP increase enacted as part of the Families First Act (P.L. 116-127). As I have explained, the further FMAP increase, in turn, would increase the…
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News and Notes on Medicaid Prescription Drug Pricing and Coverage Issues
Unfortunately, Congress has largely shelved drug pricing legislation, including sound proposals to lower federal and state Medicaid drug costs, as it focuses on legislation responding to the ongoing COVID-19 health and economic crisis. Nevertheless, there have some developments in the area of Medicaid prescription drug pricing and coverage over the last few months that are…
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HEROES Act Includes Other Provisions Strengthening Medicaid and CHIP
The HEROES Act bill (H.R. 6800), which the House will likely consider Friday, May 13, would provide a critically needed, additional one-year increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) and block the Trump Administration from finalizing the damaging Medicaid Financial Accountability Rule (MFAR) during the duration of the public health emergency. It also includes…
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States Should Reevaluate Harmful Medicaid Waivers to Respond to COVID-19
To respond to the COVID-19 crisis, many states have made significant, temporary changes to their Medicaid programs, mostly through emergency waivers and state plan amendments. However, states also have the option to make more lasting changes by reversing harmful policies in their Section 1115 waivers. Unwinding bad waivers not only makes it easier for states,…
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House HEROES Act Bill Would Provide Significant Further Support for State Medicaid Programs
As I have previously written, while helpful, the temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) provided by the Families First COVID-19 response legislation (P.L. 116-127) is clearly insufficient to address the sharply higher state Medicaid costs and overall budget deficits states will experience in this health and economic crisis. That…
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Waive, Suspend, Delay, Eliminate, Forgive CHIP Premiums? Semantics Matter for Families who Need Fiscal Relief from COVID-19 Impacts
As families lose their jobs and employer-sponsored health insurance, eliminating Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) premiums is a great way to provide continuity of coverage for children and fiscal relief for families. But there may be a catch. While some states are submitting state plan amendments to waive collection of premiums or temporarily halt disenrollments…
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Medicaid Managed Care in the Time of COVID-19 and State Budget Cuts
Three months into the pandemic, Medicaid’s role as the nation’s frontline health insurer has come into sharp relief. The focus is on the struggles of frontline hospitals, nursing homes, and health care workers; the vertiginous climb in the number of unemployed and uninsured; the threat to the solvency of pediatric and other primary care providers;…
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State Budget Cuts to Medicaid Means Reduced Federal Funding, Larger Total Cuts
A recent Politico article indicates that states are beginning to consider cuts to their Medicaid program as they face severe budget deficits resulting from the COVID-19 related economic crisis. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act bars states from cutting Medicaid eligibility, making it harder to enroll and disenrolling beneficiaries for the duration of the public…
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New Urban Institute State-Level Health Coverage Estimates as Unemployment Rises
A new Robert Wood Johnson Foundation study conducted by the Urban Institute estimates the impact of increases in the unemployment rate on health coverage among the non-elderly nationally — including changes in Medicaid/CHIP enrollment and the number of uninsured — and on a state-specific basis. A variety of scenarios are assessed. There are three unemployment…
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Critical Need for Further, Large FMAP Increases to Sustain State Medicaid Programs During Economic Crisis
As part of the Families First COVID-19 legislation, Congress provided a temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) for the duration of the public health emergency. The bipartisan National Governors Association and the National Association of Medicaid Directors are both urging Congress to provide further FMAP increases (totaling at least…
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Governors and Medicaid Directors Continue to Press for Withdrawal of Damaging Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Rule
As I have previously written, a significant share of the inadequate fiscal relief that Congress has already provided to states facing huge budget shortfalls could be canceled out if the Trump Administration goes ahead and finalizes its highly damaging “Medicaid Fiscal Accountability” rule (known as MFAR). The rule would adversely affect how states finance their…
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Bipartisan Group of Medicaid Directors, AMA, MACPAC and Stakeholders Issue Urgent Pleas for More Medicaid Help for Safety Net Providers
Those of us who have worked on Medicaid for years have a running joke about Medicaid being the missing “M” in the acronym CMS – which stands for the federal Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Medicare has always been the big dog on the block – both in terms of political clout, size and…
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The Paycheck Protection Program and Healthcare Enhancement Act Fails to Fund the Nation’s Frontline Health Insurer
Today, the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act became law.This is the fourth piece of legislation addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and the nation’s economic downturn. It provides additional funding for programs created by the CARES Act, (P.L. 116- 123), including another $380 billion to support small businesses and another $75 billion to help…
