Trump promising consumers digital-age health care approach
A smartphone app that lets Medicare patients access their claims information. Giving consumers a share of drug company rebates for their prescriptions.
Category Archives: Medicaid
Medicaid expansion supporters in Virginia have new hope
Executive Director of the Lackey Free Clinic, Carol Sale, gestures during an interview at the Lackey Free Clinic in Yorktown, Va., Thursday, March 1, 2018. Virginia lawmakers aren't going to pass a budget on schedule this year, the second time in four years that disagreements over Medicaid expansion have led to a stalemate.
Republicans attacking Obamacare, one more time
Republicans in Congress spent much of 2017 seeking to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. After repeated attempts failed, they celebrated a victory with the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
Dave Solomon’s State House Dome: Medicaid number in dispute
Republican leaders in the state legislature last week unveiled their long-awaited proposal to continue the expansion of Medicaid in New Hampshire, hoping to continue government-funded health insurance for the 50,000 or so Granite Staters who've come on board since eligibility was expanded as part of Obamacare.
Capitol Views: Another day of session, another derailment
A political melee over Medicaid issues unfolded during today's meeting of the House Ways and Means Committee. Bills backed by the House GOP leadership that were supposed to be part of larger deal to advance tax proposals in this special session were unexpectedly deferred by their legislative sponsors.
Donald Trump has Super Weird capitalization habits On Twitter
President Donald Trump shares a laugh with Ms.Seema Verma, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Secretary Tom Price, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Vice President Mike Pence on... President Donald Trump introduces Enda Kenny, the Taoiseach of Ireland, to Wilbur Ross, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, in the West Wing Lobby on Thursday, March 16, 2017, upon the Prime Minister's arrival to the White House.
As states aim to reduce drug costs, Canadian imports seen as option
Lawmakers in more than two-thirds of the states are considering ways to reduce prescription drug costs, including importing them from Canada, as they strive to balance budgets without knowing for sure what their governments' tabs will be. A total of 87 bills in 34 states of all political stripes seek to save money on prescription drugs, according to the nonpartisan National Academy for State Health Policy.
States look to lower drug costs, consider Canadian imports
In this Friday, July 8, 2016, file photo, a pharmacy technician fills a prescription at a pharmacy, in Sacramento, Calif. Lawmakers in almost half the states are considering ways in 2018 to reduce prescription drug costs, including importing them from Canada.
On drug costs, modest steps follow Trump’s big promises
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West Virginia AG announces proposal to crack down on opioids abuse
West Virginia's Attorney General Patrick Morrisey on Tuesday proposed a five-point strategy to rein in opioids abuse in his hard-hit corner of Appalachia, from an "enforcement surge" of 150 state troopers to limiting certain fills of pain pills to just three days. The legislative package would shield prescribers who decline to prescribe opioids - so doctors don't put economic incentives over safe care - tighten up prescribing practices under the state Medicaid program and force doctors to crosscheck a prescribing database every time they write a script for opioids, instead of just once a year.
Mike Pence’s home state can now require Medicaid recipients to work
Now, the Trump administration, in which they both serve, has allowed the state to implement even more changes in the safety net program -- most notably by requiring some Medicaid recipients to work. The state, which has served as a Medicaid expansion model for Republicans, announced Friday that it will require certain Medicaid recipients to get jobs or participate in other community activities starting in 2019.
St. Charles takes $3 million hit on drug costs
Efforts to rein in abuse of a drug discount program for hospitals that serve a high number of low-income patients could cost St. Charles Health System an estimated $3 million in revenue in 2018. The 340B program, created by Congress in 1992, requires pharmaceutical manufacturers to give deep discounts to safety-net hospitals and health clinics.
Healthy Indiana Plan extended to end of February
Gov. Eric Holcomb announced yesterday that Indiana has received an extension to continue operation of the state's Healthy Indiana Plan through Feb. 28. The current HIP program was set to expire Jan. 31. "We had hoped to receive approval of our expanded HIP program by Wednesday. We're close but we are still working through the final details of our new plan with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ," said Governor Eric Holcomb.
Va. Senate Republicans reject Medicaid expansion
Republicans in the Virginia Senate on Thursday tabled legislation that would have expanded Medicaid coverage to hundreds of thousands of lower-income residents of Virginia. Voting along party lines, the Senate Education and Health Committee indefinitely postponed action on the proposal.
Some GOP-counties in Oregon backed Medicaid-funding measure
It wasn't only Democratic-leaning counties in Oregon that voted to impose a tax on hospitals and health insurers to pay for Medicaid for low-income residents - several counties that voted for Donald Trump also helped propel the ballot measure to resounding "yes" vote. As president, Trump endorsed Republican bills to repeal the Affordable Care Act's expansion of Medicaid.
Work requirements may prompt more states to expand Medicaid
In an ironic twist, the Trump administration's embrace of work requirements for low-income people on Medicaid is prompting lawmakers in some conservative states to resurrect plans to expand health care for the poor. Trump's move has been widely criticized as threatening the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion.
Oregon approves new taxes to address Medicaid costs
Oregon approved taxes on hospitals, health insurers and managed care companies in an unusual special election Tuesday that asked voters - and not lawmakers - how to pay for Medicaid costs that now include coverage of hundreds of thousands of low-income residents added to the program's rolls under the Affordable Care Act. Measure 101 was passing handily in early returns Tuesday night.
Diane Wood: Midterm election a chance to restore our reputation
Our next election is just 10 months away. It is our chance to restore our goodness and our reputation.
‘Safety net’ hospitals face federal budget cuts
A double whammy of federal budget cuts might force many hospitals, particularly those that serve poor or rural communities, to scale back services or even shut their doors. The $3.6 billion in cuts this year - $2 billion from a program that sends federal dollars to hospitals that serve a high percentage of Medicaid or uninsured patients, and $1.6 billion from a drug discount program - will have the greatest effect on so-called safety net hospitals that provide medical care for all comers, no matter their ability to pay.
Start Saving Now, Because Social Security Is Screwed
The single largest government program in the United States will soon have an annual budget of $1 trillion a year. Yet even that amount isn't sufficient to fulfill the promises it has made.