Puerto Rico governor seeks Florida's assistance in addressing healthcare crisis
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- The governor of Puerto Rico, Ricardo Rosselló Nevares, has alerted Governor Rick Scott of Florida in a letter, calling his attention to the "rapidly approaching drop in federal healthcare funding for Puerto Rico, known as Medicaid cliff", which will likely result in a substantial economic impact to the Florida budget.
The ¨Medicaid cliff¨ is a scenario caused by funding shortfalls built in to the unique and inequitable healthcare funding mechanisms for Puerto Rico. If realized, tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans, all natural born citizens of the United States, will likely continue to relocate to Florida to qualify for Medicaid, costing Florida taxpayers $2.5 billion over the coming decade.
In the letter, Nevares states, “I’m reaching out to ask for your help in activating Florida’s Congressional delegation as a voice of reason in Congress on this issue which is entirely avoidable. Moreover, Congress has a perfect opportunity to deal with this as it works to approve legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA).”
Similar letters have also been sent to the governors of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Ohio, New Jersey, Georgia, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-Puerto-Rico-governor-seeks-Florida%27s-assistance-in-addressing-healthcare-crisis-33850.html