The governor cut $192 million in Medicaid funding for hospitals last month, but the actual hit to hospitals could end up being 25 percent higher. The state is holding back additional payments that weren’t part of the cost-saving measure, and the governor’s budget office said decisions about whether to pay them will be “based on whether we have enough money to keep the budget in balance.”
Medicaid
Posted inHealth, Money
Market jitters prompt Malloy to make $103M in emergency cuts
Responding to a weak stock market, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy ordered $103 million in emergency cuts Friday, including a major hit in Medicaid payments that will ultimately cost hospitals about $190 million in state and federal funds.
Posted inHealth, Money
Few who lost Medicaid have purchased insurance
When state lawmakers scaled back Medicaid eligibility for thousands of low-income parents to help balance this year’s budget, proponents argued the parents could buy deeply discounted coverage through the state’s health insurance exchange. But so far, fewer than 20 percent of those who lost coverage at the start of this month have signed up.
Posted inHealth
Uptick in denials for home nursing care worries families, advocates
Families and advocates say they are concerned by a recent sharp rise in the rate of denials for extended home nursing care that helps families caring for young people with significant medical needs.
Posted inHealth
Feds say state should give back up to $24 million in Medicaid money
In response, the state Department of Social Services agreed to repay $957,943 to the federal government. But the agency said it does not believe that it should refund the other $23 million.
Posted inHealth
The next big push: Getting people health care, not just insurance
Since the federal health law’s major provisions rolled out last year, much of the attention has been on getting people signed up for coverage. But increasingly, the focus is turning to what comes next: making sure those who gained coverage use it to improve their health, and ensuring that the health care system adapts to meet their needs. First story in an occasional series on major issues facing health care.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Happy birthday, Medicaid, and CT’s HUSKY
Happy birthday, Medicaid! Our kids and our state have a lot to celebrate: a state-federal health coverage program that helps needy youngsters, promotes familial economic stability, and reduces industry costs. As citizens, we can all celebrate 50 years of a program that binds us together, channels our shared civic responsibility, and invests in our state’s most valuable and precious resource, our children.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
CT a leader in Medicaid dental care, but room for improvement
Medicaid’s mandated Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment provision, along with proven innovations in adult programs in forward-looking states like Connecticut, have proven that we can put good oral health within reach of the most vulnerable. The state of dental care in Medicaid is far from perfect, but it has worked for millions and can work for millions more. We should celebrate the program on its 50th birthday and commit to doubling down on dental care.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Murphy presses for mental health overhaul
WASHINGTON – Sen. Chris Murphy has teamed up with a Louisiana Republican to press for an overhaul of the nation’s mental health system at a time when Congress – stung by a rash of mass shootings by mentally unstable people – may be willing to consider changes.
Posted inHealth
DSS call-wait time plummets (to 17 minutes) after changes
Wait times for callers to reach a worker at the state Department of Social Services fell dramatically in June following changes meant to improve how the agency handles calls. On average, people calling the social service agency waited 17 minutes on hold to reach a worker — down from 87 minutes last July.
Posted inHealth
As Medicaid grows, will there be more cuts to provider payments?
Radiologists are appealing to legislators to roll back a 42.5 percent cut to their Medicaid payment rates. And some patient advocates are raising a broader concern, warning that cuts to providers who treat Medicaid patients could become more common, making it harder for the more than 725,000 state residents in Medicaid to find specialists to treat them.
Posted inHealth, Politics
As Medicaid cut looms, critics warn of more uninsured
A controversial budget cut expected to cause 23,700 parents to lose Medicaid coverage comes less than two years after a much-touted expansion of coverage under the federal health law. Will those parents find other sources of insurance, or end up uninsured?
Posted inHealth, Politics
Budget would cut health, social services, but less than gov’s plan
Updated at 6:40 a.m.
The budget deal between legislative leaders and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration calls for millions of dollars in cuts to programs that serve seniors, poor families, and people with developmental disabilities and mental illnesses. But compared to the deep reductions Malloy proposed in February, many of the cuts are relatively modest.
Posted inHealth, Politics
After providers complain, lawmakers consider changes to Medicaid audits
Legislators are considering changes to the way the state audits Medicaid payments to health care providers, who have complained for years that the process penalizes honest errors and can lead to costs dramatically higher than any identified mistakes. One independent pharmacist got involved in pushing for change after an audit of his drug store found $268 worth of problematic prescriptions — and he faced a penalty of $144,814.
Posted inCT Viewpoints
Proposed cut in dental reimbursement could jeopardize children’s care
Gov. Dannel Malloy’s proposed budget charges the Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS) with achieving $90 million in savings through a reduction in provider rates. A conservative estimate of the impact of reducing dental fees by 5.6 percent indicates that 24,000 fewer HUSKY-insured young people under 21 years of age would have access to a dental visit in each of the next two fiscal years.