Medicaid

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has proposed using new tools to monitor costs associated with prescription drugs so it can hold pharma manufacturers accountable for what Medicaid programs pay for them. The Notice of Proposed Rule Making was made through... Read More

WASHINGTON — Every so often the idea of imposing work requirements in Medicaid comes through Congress. Well, the concept is making headway again, and this time at the state level.  Currently, Arkansas is the only state to have implemented work... Read More

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill in the House aims to permanently expand access to emergency medical care for Medicare, Tricare and Medicaid beneficiaries.  Introduced by Reps. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, the Emergency Care Improvement Act would head... Read More

WASHINGTON — Women in Oklahoma are now the beneficiaries of a full 12 months of comprehensive coverage after pregnancy under a change in policy announced this past week by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Oklahoma is the 30th... Read More

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A Medicaid expansion deal in North Carolina received final legislative approval on Thursday, ending a decade of debate over whether the closely politically divided state should accept the federal government's coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults.... Read More

WASHINGTON — When the Inflation Reduction Act became law last year, it empowered the Health and Human Services secretary, for the first time ever, to begin negotiating certain prescription drug prices with drug manufacturers. The prices would go into effect... Read More

WASHINGTON — A proposed physician fee schedule for 2023 published this past week by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services aims to increase access to behavioral health care, cancer screening and dental care. The Calendar Year 2023 Physician Fee... Read More

WASHINGTON — COVID-19 has had a profound impact on the finances, ongoing operations and priorities of state Medicaid programs, according to a new report released by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Responses from the survey, which the nonprofit has conducted annually... Read More

HERMISTON, Ore. — Oregon on Wednesday became the first state in the nation to receive an influx of significant new federal funding to pilot changes to the state’s Medicaid program. Gov. Kate Brown and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services... Read More

WASHINGTON — In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled federal regulators improperly cut drug reimbursement payments to hospitals in low-income communities beginning in 2018, a move that cost hospitals and clinics billions of dollars. The ruling in... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 on Monday in favor of Florida's Medicaid program in a dispute over how much money the state can take from an accident victim's private settlement to recover the costs of their care.... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services extended the COVID-19 public health emergency this week beyond the July 15 expiration to October. The eventual expiration of the declaration will lead to changes in certain flexibilities granted to Medicare... Read More

WASHINGTON — The federal COVID-19 public health emergency, first declared Jan. 27, 2020,  was set to expire on April 16. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on Wednesday extended the COVID-19 public health emergency for 90 days. A number... Read More

WASHINGTON — Members of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s Health Policy and Advocacy Committee are now calling for lawmakers to revise current Medicaid policy dictating patients who desire postpartum sterilization wait 30 days. The pregnancy experts published their contentions to... Read More

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is disbursing an initial amount of $2 million to four health care entities in four states to bolster access to their services in underserved communities. Funds will be distributed to participating hospitals in... Read More

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has filed an appeal of the Biden administration’s withdrawal of the state Medicaid work requirement previously approved by the Trump White House. “Removing a provision that says a healthy, able-bodied individual should... Read More

WASHINGTON - Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, are urging their colleagues to pass the Ensuring Access to Primary Care for Women & Children Act. This legislation is intended to expand access to primary care but it languished in... Read More

DENVER, Colo. - Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., on Wednesday reintroduced their Medicare-X Choice Act by urging their colleagues to embrace it as a way of expanding both the Affordable Care Act and Medicare.  During a late... Read More

TOPEKA, Kan. – This week, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly announced legislation to expand Medicaid, known as KanCare, and provide health insurance for 165,000 Kansans. The legislation also establishes a regulatory framework to make Kansas the 48th state to legalize medical... Read More

RICHMOND, Va. — Gov. Ralph Northam announced Virginia will allocate $25 million from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to fund monthly retainer payments for day support programs that provide services for Virginians with developmental disabilities.  These... Read More

WASHINGTON - For weeks it had been the stuff of living room banter and fodder for self-quarantining late night comedians. Suddenly, apparently on a whim, the president who once described himself as a "very stable genius," was talking about how... Read More

WASHINGTON — Hospitals, governors and medical professionals have gathered in opposition to a complex Trump administration Medicaid proposal that opponents fear would slash federal health care contributions and add administrative costs. More than 4,200 organizations or individuals have commented on... Read More

WASHINGTON — The National Governors Association is warning that a newly proposed regulation by the Trump administration could lead to dramatic cuts in Medicaid and deny health care to millions of low-income Americans. In a bipartisan letter signed by Govs.... Read More

WASHINGTON - States will now have the ability to convert part of their Medicaid funding into a block grant under a new program announced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Thursday. According to Seema Verma, administrator of... Read More

WASHINGTON — More local and state officials are working to ensure that low-income residents stay on Medicaid when they go to jail. Federal law bars Medicaid recipients from accessing their full federal health benefits while incarcerated. But officials from both... Read More

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Former Republican Gov. Matt Bevin’s controversial plan to impose work requirements and monthly premiums for many Kentucky Medicaid recipients is no more, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear announced Monday. In one of his first major moves as the... Read More

WASHINGTON — A mountain of evidence proves it: Good health translates to better student performance. Children who have high blood pressure or are obese perform worse academically than others. Children with asthma miss far more school. Students who have healthy... Read More

WASHINGTON — Year by year, resistance to extending Medicaid to more low-income Americans in conservative states has given way. That trend seems likely to continue into 2020. In some states, Democratic governors who favor expansion have replaced Republicans who were... Read More