And The Hits (To The Poor And The Rest Of Us) Just Keep On Coming !!! (Medicaid)

[WillyT]

As Number of Medicaid Patients Goes Up, Their Benefits Are About to Drop
By ROBERT PEAR
Published: June 15, 2011

<snip>

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration injected billions of dollars into Medicaid, the nation’s low-income health program, as the recession deepened two years ago. The money runs out at the end of this month, and benefits are being cut for millions of people, even though unemployment has increased.

From New Jersey to California, state officials are bracing for the end to more than $90 billion in federal largess specifically designated for Medicaid. To hold down costs, states are cutting Medicaid payments to doctors and hospitals, limiting benefits for Medicaid recipients, reducing the scope of covered services, requiring beneficiaries to pay larger co-payments and expanding the use of managed care.

As a result, costs can be expected to rise in other parts of the health care system. Cuts in Medicaid payments to doctors, for example, make it less likely that they will accept Medicaid patients and more likely that people will turn to hospital emergency rooms for care. Hospitals and other health care providers often try to make up for the loss of Medicaid revenue by increasing charges to other patients, including those with private insurance, experts say.

Neither the White House nor Congress has tried to extend the extra federal financing for Medicaid, even though the number of beneficiaries is higher now than when Congress approved the aid as part of an economic recovery package in February 2009.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that federal Medicaid spending will decline in 2012 for only the second time in the 46-year history of the program. But states say they will have to have to spend more on Medicaid as they struggle to make up for the loss of federal money. State officials say they are resigned to the loss of the extra federal matching payments, given the climate in Congress, where deficit reduction is a paramount goal.

<snip>

More: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/16/health/policy/16medicaid.html?_r=1&hp

:wtf:

:kick:

[Harmony Blue]

1. It seems we may see

Americans out in the street in force. I suspect this will be the tipping point for it.

[provis99]

4. Americans won't do jack squat.

The only way Americans will take action in the streets is when their hockey team loses the Stanley Cup.

[ProSense]

2. From the OP: "The Obama administration injected billions of dollars into Medicaid,

the nation’s low-income health program, as the recession deepened two years ago."


Also posted here:

"The extra aid was scheduled to expire last December, but Congress extended it for six months at the urging of the White House and state officials."

Yeah, it would have expired in December if the deal hadn't passed.

[Autumn]

3. Just in time to ramp up

the election. This will work well for the republicans.:grr:

[RB TexLa]

5. Part of it is a good thing, lowering what it pays to doctors and hospitals

We need to use Medicaid and Medicare to drive down the costs.

[WillyT]

6. Not When Doctors Start Turning Away Medicaid Patients...

:shrug:

[RB TexLa]

7. That's when you tell them that collection on their federally backed student loans is being

accelerated if they chose to not accept Medicaid/Medicare. Once you force them to accept the lower payments, private insurance will follow and then there won't be a reason to not accpet the government plans.

[former9thward]

10. The loans are a contract. The terms can't be changed by legislation .

[Harmony Blue]

8. Reducing the pool of doctors Medicaid recipients have to work with

is a disaster. Especially those undergoing cancer treatment.

[RB TexLa]

9. See reply 7. Driving healthcare costs down is a good thing.

[eilen]

11. Medicaid pays $12 per Dr. visit, lower if it occurs in the

hospital-- something like $7. I don't think that is the cost cutting we need.