Behind Medicaid cuts -- Outpatient rehabilitation therapy vs. home health care
Before the state finalizes a decision next week that would slash payments for a therapy program for the poor, speech and physical therapists are fighting back, saying the impending budget cuts will harm thousands of children with disabilities.
But behind the publicity campaign lobbyists, advocacy groups and some lawmakers are waging against the cuts, a more private battle is taking place — this one among providers themselves.
The question is who will shoulder the bulk of the cuts to the increasingly expensive program, which the state says is contributing to spiraling Medicaid costs. And it’s pitting outpatient rehabilitation facilities, where parents bring children to receive services, against home health agencies, which send therapists to patients’ homes.
Facility owners say the cuts would unfairly target their businesses. Medicaid spending on facilities increased 5 percent — from $180 million to $188 million — between 2009 and 2013, the most recent year for which data was available. By comparison, state spending on home health agencies grew more than 230 percent in that time period — from $99 million to $328 million.
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