logo
Alabama House expedites Medicaid for pregnant women, joining other states with high mortality rates

Alabama House expedites Medicaid for pregnant women, joining other states with high mortality rates

Washington Post14-02-2025

MONTOGMERY, Ala. — A bill that would expedite Medicaid coverage and prenatal health care for low-income pregnant women in Alabama has advanced as lawmakers across the South try to address rising maternal and infant mortality rates.
The 'presumptive eligibility' legislation states that Medicaid will pay for a pregnant woman's outpatient medical care for up to 60 days while her application for the government-funded insurance program is being considered.
'This way we cut out some of the red tape, we get them in as quickly as possible,' said Rep. Marilyn Lands, the Democrat representing Huntsville who introduced the bill.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Opinion: Budget bill's Medicaid cuts hurt all Utahns
Opinion: Budget bill's Medicaid cuts hurt all Utahns

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Opinion: Budget bill's Medicaid cuts hurt all Utahns

One Big Beautiful Bill, or One Big Budget Bust? This one act of legislation will affect everyone, not just those on Medicaid. Even if you don't think cuts to Medicaid will affect you, they will, and not in a good way. This legislation will ultimately decrease the health of Utahns, inadvertently increase the cost of healthcare and increase wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars. The 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' includes provisions that slash Medicaid coverage through the guise of work/education requirements. While this may sound like a great way to increase accountability for Medicaid enrollees, this is costly to states and is confusing for enrollees. When Arkansas implemented Medicaid work and reporting requirements in 2018, enrollees reported both confusion and misunderstanding about what was required. Due to these requirements, 18,000 individuals, or 25% of enrollees, lost their insurance coverage. Researchers in 2020 looked at the impact of Arkansas' program and found that the loss of coverage led to poorer medication adherence, delays in receiving care and increased medical debt. In 2019, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) — a federal office that provides fact-based, non-partisan information used to improve government spending and save taxpayers billions of dollars — estimated that state expansion of Medicaid work/education requirements would cost anywhere from under $10 million to over $250 million just on administrative costs. Accounting for inflation, this alone can cost Utah anywhere from about $13 million to $310 million just to set up this program. While this cost may be partially covered by the federal government, this has proven to be a waste of government spending. In one year of Georgia's implementation of a similar program, their own state Medicaid agency reported that it cost both state and federal taxpayers a combination of $40 million, with 80% of it going towards administrative costs rather than medical care. If implemented in our state, which prides itself on being fiscally responsible, removing red tape and deregulation, adding additional work/education requirements goes against these core beliefs. Hidden in the 'Big Beautiful Bill' are provisions to cut Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Programs by $3.5 billion, claiming this work 'can be conducted [and funded] more effectively by States,' according to the Fiscal Year 2026 budget request. States would need to develop programs and funding for employees to assist in this goal of shifting from the federal focus to state focus at the taxpayers' expense. Additionally, the budget includes provisions that block federal funding for preventive care at facilities offering family planning, reproductive health and related medical services. By blocking funding to these facilities, the healthcare system will shift from prevention to crisis response. Important public health research is also on the 'Big Beautiful Bill' chopping block. As the president proposes almost $18 billion in cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) — the United States' medical research arm — projects will lose ground and become stagnant. You may be asking yourself, why does this matter to me? What if I have commercial insurance? Why should I care about research? The damaging effects of these budget cuts touch every aspect of society, creating a domino effect. These policies don't operate in isolation — they compound each other, ultimately raising costs, lowering care quality and destabilizing institutions relied upon by people across the income spectrum. Millions will lose access to primary, routine and preventive care. Conditions will go undetected and unmanaged, especially among children, women and people with chronic illnesses. Hospitals — especially children's hospitals and safety-net facilities — will absorb more unpaid care. This reduces operating margins and strains staff and resources. Hospitals will increase charges to private insurers to recoup losses. This drives up insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs for middle-income families and employers. Fewer pediatricians, OB/GYNs and community health providers will stay in underfunded or unstable systems. Burnout and turnover will rise, especially in high-need communities. Biomedical research will come to a standstill, jeopardizing our ability to find new cures for debilitating diseases like cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer's. These cuts harm the entire healthcare system, threatening access, affordability and quality of care for everyone, regardless of insurance status. Protect your health by contacting your senators and telling them to block this One Big Budget Bust.

Legislature eyes changing Medicaid eligibility rules for people with intellectual disabilities
Legislature eyes changing Medicaid eligibility rules for people with intellectual disabilities

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Legislature eyes changing Medicaid eligibility rules for people with intellectual disabilities

House Speaker Daniel Perez (R) with House budget chief Rep. Lawrence McClure (L). (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) Florida could be poised to make it easier for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities (IDD) to maintain their Medicaid services. The latest round of budget negotiations between the House and Senate includes a proposal by the House to eliminate a requirement for people with IDD to annually be redetermined eligible for the health care safety net program for the poor, elderly, and disabled. If approved once, they would be presumptively eligible the rest of their lives unless they no longer qualify for Medicaid or their condition changes. The proposal, if accepted by the Florida Senate, would require approval from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to take effect. 'I'd call it a game changer for our population,' Florida Developmental Disabilities Council Executive Director Valerie Breen told the Florida Phoenix Wednesday. The council aims to increase the capacity of individuals with IDD to be included in their communities. The House health care budget conferees made the offer Tuesday. As of this publication, the budget negotiators had not met again. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Breen said people with these disabilities face difficulties when they have to be re-determined Medicaid-eligible. She said people with IDD erroneously fell off the Medicaid rolls when, following the end of the public health emergency associated with Covid 19, people had to requalify for Medicaid. Breen guessed that as many as 1,000 people with IDD who were eligible for Medicaid erroneously lost their coverage. For people with IDD the redetermination process requires the Department of Children and Families (DCF), which determines eligibility, to communicate with the state Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), which administers the Medicaid program, and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD), which is charged with oversight of programs that serve these populations. Sometimes, Breen said, redetermination also included interaction with the Social Security Administration. 'Those were the critical components, and the agencies did not communicate with each other,' she said. As a result people with IDD lost access to the home and community-based services that help them with the activities of daily living like eating and grooming. 'They were not able to access any of those services,' Breen said. The Legislature was forced to extend the 2025 Session after legislative leadership couldn't reach an agreement on how much state money to spend in state fiscal year 2025-26, which begins July 1, and how much tax relief to provide residents. House Speaker Daniel Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton ultimately agreed to extend the session until June 16 and to spend about $50 billion in general revenue, or state tax dollars, across various government agencies. Most of the money will go to two areas: education and health care, with the former receiving more than $22 billion and the latter about $17.5 billion. Budget negotiators have been meeting to try to hammer out the details of how the money should be spent. The state budget must be printed and distributed to legislators by June 15 in order to vote on it by June 18. That's because of a constitutional provision that requires the budget to cool off for 72 hours before legislators can vote on it. New law brings managed care to people with intellectual disabilities The move to allow people with IDD to remain on Medicaid after initially being determined eligible is one of several proposals relating to people with IDD that are being championed by the House. Perez vowed to make those issues a priority during his two year tenure. To that end, Perez championed HB 1103, a proposal to make a small managed care pilot program, available statewide for people with IDD. HB 1103 also requires APD to publicly publish reports regarding the number of people with IDD the state serves and the number of people on a wait list for the Medicaid services. Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed the legislation. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE

UHC Medicare Advantage patients will lose coverage at Brown Health hospitals on July 1
UHC Medicare Advantage patients will lose coverage at Brown Health hospitals on July 1

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

UHC Medicare Advantage patients will lose coverage at Brown Health hospitals on July 1

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A spokesperson for Brown University Health confirmed to 12 News on Wednesday that negotiations with UnitedHealthcare have ended, and UHC's Medicare Advantage plans will not be accepted at Brown Health's four Rhode Island hospitals starting July 1. Target 12 initially reported back in May that UHC had notified affected patients about the ongoing negotiations via a letter. According to a spokesperson for Brown Health, the hospital system had asked UHC to increase its reimbursement rate, as well as 'eliminate their administrative policies that deviate from traditional Medicare, such as unnecessary prior approval and utilization management, that cause frustration for patients and result in extra cost to our health care system.' 'Since both parties held firm in their positions, we mutually decided to end our Medicare Advantage hospital contract,' the Brown Health spokesperson said. 'We proposed extending our contract through the end of the year to provide Medicare Advantage members continued access to Brown University Health's hospitals while we negotiate,' a UHC spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday. 'Unfortunately, the health system refused.' Both Brown Health and UHC emphasized that this change only applies to Hasbro Children's Hospital, The Miriam Hospital, Newport Hospital, and Rhode Island Hospital. Physicians associated with Brown Health and the group's urgent care clinics will continue to accept UHC's Medicare Advantage plans through Dec. 31, 2025, as will St. Anne's Hospital and Morton Hospital in Massachusetts. Medicare Advantage is a type of health plan offered by Medicare-approved private companies as an alternative to original Medicare. Like Medicare, it is available for Americans 65 and older, as well as those with certain severe disabilities or illnesses. Federal data shows that about 60% of Rhode Island Medicare recipients utilize Medicare Advantage plans. In Rhode Island, they're offered by Aetna, Blue Cross & Blue Shield, and UHC. (UHC has not answered repeated requests for comment on the number of patients who will be affected by the change.) Brown Health hospitals will continue accepting UHC's Medicaid and commercial health insurance plans, as well as Medicare Advantage plans from other providers. Starting July 1, treatments at Brown Health hospitals will be billed to UHC Medicare Advantage patients as 'out-of-network' care. However, a UHC spokesperson stressed that in an emergency, members should go to the nearest hospital even if it's not 'in-network,' as the company covers emergency visits at its in-network benefit level. Dr. Johnny Luo, a health insurance expert from Doctor's Choice, told 12 News there are ways to get a new insurance plan if needed. Outside of Medicare's open enrollment period, which lasts from Oct. 15 to Dec. 17, Luo said, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have been known to offer special election periods throughout the year on a case-by-case basis. Brown Health also encouraged UHC Medicare Advantage members to find out if they're eligible for 'continuity of care' protections by calling UHC Customer Service at 1-800-711-0646. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store