Latest news with #Groen
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Michigan Senate panel hears input on potential devastation of federal Medicaid cuts
Katie O'Neal (right) testifies before the Senate Health Policy Committee as it discusses proposed federal Medicaid cuts on Wednesday, June 5, 2025 | Photo by Ben Solis As Republicans in Congress pursue massive cuts to federal Medicaid dollars, Michigan lawmakers have been left to decipher what that means for the state and its residents who rely on vital health care funding. On Wednesday, members of the Michigan Senate Health Policy Committee met to discuss the U.S. House of Representatives' recently passed spending bill that would slice $535 billion from the federal program over the next 10 years. Testifying before the Democratic-controlled Michigan Senate committee were members of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, hospital officials and federally qualified health care providers. Meghan Groen, senior deputy director of health services with the MDHHS, said one in four Michigan residents rely on Medicaid and that a significant portion of those recipients live in rural areas. The U.S. House proposal to cap and eliminate provider taxes would cost Michigan around $525 million, Groen said, and the proposed work requirements in the federal spending bill could lead to a $155 million implementation cost with less coverage provided. Groen noted that nearly 500,000 people could face coverage loss. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX One of the benefits of Michigan expanding Medicaid coverage many years ago was that health insurance could be provided to more low-income residents and reduced the financial burdens on hospitals. Eliminating the Medicaid expansion could lead to increased emergency room visits and higher health care costs overall. 'The Healthy Michigan plan involves about 750,000 Michiganders. At this point, it succeeded in exactly what it was intended to do,' Groen said. 'It prevents people from going into bankruptcy and medical debt, because someone in their family got sick. Uninsured people don't stop getting sick. They wait until they're sicker, and then they go to an emergency room. They go with a higher level of care, where it's more expensive to serve them, and their acuity, or how sick they are, is more intense at that time, so it costs more.' If they don't have money to pay that bill, Groen said, it gets left unpaid, and the providers have uncompensated care. She said the cost for everybody in the community goes up everybody who goes into that provider. Sen. Sylvia Santana (D-Detroit) wondered about the work requirements, noting that the Institute of Health Policy and Innovation has said that 49% of Michiganders who fall into that category are already working. Groen said the state does not have an exact number of how many in that population were actually working, but she suspected it would be most recipients. Adding the proposed requirements would lead to a lot of extra communication about recipients go on to comply with the requirement, which also say they needed to be working the month before they applied. 'It might be a little confusing for an individual who's like, 'great, I just got a job, I'll apply for Medicaid,' and then to get that determination letter [saying] that they, in fact, do not meet the requirements is going to be very confusing for people who are just reaching out, getting a job, and trying to make sure they have health care for themselves and their family,' Groen said. 'We are very concerned about both what the compliance looks like for individuals who are working and individuals who are not.' Also testifying was Katie O'Neal, a mother from Ypsilanti, who extolled how Medicaid helped her child get lifesaving care and without going through the rigors of dealing with the modern health insurance industry. O'Neal's son, Nathan, who came to their family through the foster care system, was born 11-weeks premature. He was eligible for Medicaid due to his inclusion in foster care. Shortly after he arrived as a member of the O'Neal family, Nathan became ill with RSV, a common respiratory virus that can have serious consequences for infants and older adults. It was later discovered that he had a stenosis, or narrowing, of his lower airway, requiring a tracheostomy. All of that care was covered by Medicaid, O'Neal said, which was a blessing. Years later, Nathan's airway needed to be reconstructed. A two-week intensive care unit hospital stay was necessary at a cost of more than $100,000. That procedure and follow up appointments were all covered by Medicaid. He lives a pretty stable life now, despite a resurgence in complications from the reconstructive surgery, which is rare. Four procedures have commenced since late last summer, and each of those procedures were covered by Medicaid. But future surgeries and complications could be harrowing if congressional Republicans' cuts to Medicaid take hold. 'I have anxiety about the outcome and his life after surgery. I worry how first grade will go, and I wonder if we will ever escape this cycle of airway procedures,' O'Neal said. 'But I don't have to worry about convincing my insurance company that it's necessary. Medicaid has been there for us at every turn, and now there's a public debate about whether families like mine should still have this kind of support with Medicaid.'
USA Today
23-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Wisconsin football hosting another veteran tight end on transfer visit
Wisconsin football hosting another veteran tight end on transfer visit Wisconsin football is hosting former Rice tight end Boden Groen on a transfer visit, according to 247Sports' Matt Zenitz. Groen is in the portal after three years at Rice. He originally joined the program after beginning his career at Saddleback College (Juco) in California. The 6-foot-4 tight end played in 29 games over three seasons with the Owls (2022-24), totaling 60 receptions, 556 yards and three touchdowns. His best season came as a sophomore in 2023: 39 catches, 383 receiving yards and three scores. 247Sports has yet to assign the veteran a star rating or an overall transfer ranking. His reported visit to Wisconsin follows early interest from Michigan State, Duke, Houston, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and others, according to Rivals. Wisconsin is still searching for a transfer replacement for projected starting tight end Tanner Koziol, who spent just four months with the program before reentering the portal and signing with Houston. Groen has proven production at the Football Bowl Subdivision level, specifically from that 2023 season. He was unable to repeat that strong performance this past season as injuries plagued his campaign. News of the former Rice Owl's visit follows the Badgers reportedly hosting Missouri State transfer tight end Lance Mason on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Wisconsin is reportedly contending with Cal and Oklahoma for the top Football Championship Subdivision transfer pass-catcher. Returning junior Tucker Ashcraft currently projects as the Badgers' starting tight end. He has just 168 total yards in two seasons in a primary role at the position. For more on the Badgers' spring transfer movement with the portal set to close in the coming days, bookmark our 2025 spring window tracker. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Michigan physicians and health care providers underscore concerns on federal cuts to Medicaid
Dr. Rob Davidson, executive director of the Committee to Protect Health Care, at a Lansing press conference discussing the Trump administration's proposed Medicaid cuts. March 20, 2025. Photo by Kyle Davidson. A sea of white coats filled the Senate appropriations room on Thursday as members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Department of Health and Human Services heard testimony on the dire threat federal cuts to Medicaid could pose to Michigan residents and health care providers. As President Donald Trump, alongside billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, seek to free up funding for tax cuts and action on border security, House Republicans have eyed programs including Medicaid for potential cuts, while lawmakers, physicians and hospital administrators warn these cuts could bring catastrophic consequences. Medicaid is the largest insurance program in the U.S., said Meghan Groen, the senior deputy Director of the Behavioral and Physical Health and Aging Services Administration for the DHHS, noting that the program provides coverage for low-income children and families, elderly and disabled individuals and pregnant women. One in four Michiganders is enrolled in Medicaid, Groen noted, for a total of 2.6 million individuals, including 1 million children, 300,000 people with disabilities and 168,000 seniors. Additionally, Medicaid provides health coverage for 40% of the population in Michigan's rural areas Groen said, later noting that if rural health care providers are forced to close due to dramatic cuts to Medicare, those facilities would close for everyone in those areas, marking the loss of a major employer within these communities. She later explained that Medicaid is a major payer in the healthcare system, accounting for one fifth of all health care spending, with over half of that funding going toward long-term care, she said. Medicaid funding makes up 34% of the state's overall budget with more than 70% of that funding coming from federal sources, Groen said. Groen explained that Medicaid is jointly funded through both the state and federal government, with the federal government matching payments made at the state level. Michigan receives a 65% match rate and the state covers the remaining 35%. 'Every dollar you're putting in, you're getting $2 back, which is giving us $3 to spend on those beneficiaries that we were just talking about,' Groen said. The state also receives a 90% match rate for its expanded Medicaid program, which includes individuals at or below 133% of the federal poverty level, according to the DHHS's presentation, with the federal government similarly matching administrative costs at a 50%, 75% or 90% rate. If lawmakers opt to lower the 90% federal match rate to a proposed 65%, the state would lose $1.1 billion annually. Without an investment to cover that, 30% of Michigan's expanded Medicaid enrollees — or 750,000 people — would lose their coverage, Groen said. Proposals to limit Medicaid provider taxes would also be detrimental to the program, Groen said, noting that these are used to fund the program. Groen also addressed federal proposals to impose work requirements on Medicaid, noting that 64% of Michigan's expanded Medicaid population is employed. 'We have a little experience with work requirements in the state here, it cost us about $30 million previously when we were looking at implementing those. And that's an increase to those administrative costs,' Groen said. 'We did have some concerns about coverage losses. I believe it was around 100,000 individuals that we thought whose coverage would be terminated at that time. And we did believe that some of those individuals were certainly working, but had not gone through that process to verify their employment with the state of Michigan,' Groen said. Ending the enhanced federal match for administrative costs would similarly burden the state, leaving the state short $115 million for information technology projects needed to maintain current operations, Groen said. While MDHHS has not received any details on proposed caps to federal funding or block grants to support Michigan's Medicaid program over time, the national landscape and modeling show the state would lose $16 billion in federal funds between Fiscal Year 2025 and Fiscal Year 2034. Sen. John Cherry (D-Flint) noted that Michigan was among the better states in leveraging federal funding, in reference to data from the Kaiser Foundation, and that it was one of the lowest rated states for spending. 'Those two combinations, bringing in a lot of federal dollars and already being extremely efficient and lean means we are particularly vulnerable to cuts. Because when we're cutting, we're not cutting fat, we're cutting people. You know, there comes a point, you know, people like to do more with less. We do more with less. At some point, you just end up doing less with less,' Cherry said. Groen later emphasized there's only three ways to cut Medicaid. 'You can cut the people who are on it so that they no longer have that care. You can cut the rates that we pay to provide some of these services, like nursing homes and things like that. Or you can cut the services we provide. And as we kind of talk just briefly about, like, what optional services are in Medicaid… they're things that, again, I wouldn't, probably biased here but I don't think are optional,' she said. Alongside testimony from the MDHHS the committee also heard from representatives of various health care associations and providers detailing how they would be impacted by Medicaid cuts. Farhan Bhatti, CEO of Care Free Medical, which provided nearly 13,000 office visits to 3,800 patients mostly from Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counties, said U.S. House Republican's resolution to cut $880 billion in spending over the next decade would likely force his clinic to close its doors. Federally-qualified health centers like Care Free Medical, along with clinics and hospitals across Michigan, rely on Medicaid reimbursement to pay their overhead, Bhatti said. If large numbers of Medicaid patients suddenly become uninsured, many clinics and hospitals simply won't be able to make ends meet and will cease service for all patients, not just the ones on Medicaid, Bhatti said. 'Closing Care Free would mean 2,100 patients who rely on Medicaid, and another 1,700 additional patients who pay for care or receive discounted care would lose their health access completely. They would have nowhere else to go. And I would venture to guess that at least half of my patients voted for President Trump, and believed him when he said that cuts to Medicaid would be off the table,' Bhatti said. During a press conference held after the hearing, Aisha Harris, a family physician from Flint, said most people don't realize they're getting Medicaid just because their personal insurance doesn't say Medicaid. 'I don't know if they understand what this cut will do. And if they're in nursing homes, doing other assistance programs, they're not really realizing the major impact,' Harris said. 'A lot of community programs are benefiting from Medicaid benefits, and if patients and people in the community don't realize that impact, it's going to be really devastating, and most of them are just going to go without any type of insurance,' Harris said, warning that this could lead to a widespread increase of individuals facing medical debt. Additionally the government does not make payments quickly, Harris said, with people just now getting payments for appointments they made in January. 'So the idea that these cuts may happen at any point, they don't know if that's going to delay their money that they're going to get, and that's going to impact their overhead, which will impact people's payroll. It's going to have this, like, ripple effect. And so if it happens, it's going to be another crisis.' 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Telegraph
24-02-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Just Eat sold at bargain price as takeaway boom fades
Just Eat is being taken over for less than a third of what it was worth during the pandemic, as a Covid-era boom in ordering in fades. The Anglo-Dutch food delivery giant, which is listed in Amsterdam, confirmed on Monday that it had agreed to a €4.1bn (£3.4bn) takeover offer. At its peak in 2021, Just Eat Takeaway was worth £14.2bn. It is being taken over by Dutch investment group Prosus, which is paying €20.30 a share. The buyout comes two months after the company dropped its London dual listing. The price is a 49pc premium to the group's average value over the last three months. However, it is a significantly less than the €100 a share the business was trading at during the pandemic. The end of the pandemic has driven a slump in takeaway orders, while a botched US expansion has also weighed on Just Eat Takeaway, as the company is officially known. Just Eat paid $7.3bn (£5.8bn) to acquire New York-based Grubhub in 2021, before selling it for just $650m in November last year. Prosus previously attempted to buy Just Eat in 2019 for more than £5.5bn when it was a constituent of the FTSE 100. It lost out to Just Eat's Dutch rival led by entrepreneur Jitse Groen. The combined businesses were valued at £9bn at the time, but shares have plunged since then. The group's shares are down roughly 80pc from their highs during the pandemic. Just Eat is battling for market share in the UK's fiercely competitive food delivery market, where its main rivals are Deliveroo and Uber Eats. Mr Groen said: 'Prosus fully supports our strategic plans, and its extensive resources will help to further accelerate our investments.' Prosus, which is valued at more than €100bn, has stakes in several of international food delivery businesses, including a 28pc holding in Germany's Delivery Hero and stakes in China's Meituan, Brazil's iFood and India's Swiggy. The investment group is majority owned by the South African media conglomerate Naspers. Prosus was spun out from the group, which made hundreds of billions of dollars from an early investment in China's technology group Tencent in 2001. Fabricio Bloisi, Prosus's chief executive, said Just Eat had the 'opportunity to create a European tech champion'. The deal sent other food delivery stocks climbing across Europe as investors digested the deal. Deliveroo's shares were up 7pc in London, while shares in Delivery Hero, which is listed in Frankfurt, climbed 8pc. The takeover is likely to fuel speculation of further food delivery merger activity. However, Prosus's shares fell 7pc in early trading in Amsterdam.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Topeka, KDOT shares plan for continued snow removal
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Now that the snow has calmed down, residents in northeast Kansas might be wondering how you can expect the roads to be Wednesday for you morning commute. The good news is that the roads are nowhere near as bad as they were last month when we experienced a record snowfall. Still, you might be concerned about the roads going to work tomorrow. Lucky for you, the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has been working day and night to make your drive as smooth as possible. KDOT had crews in at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17. Since they got out early ahead of the snowfall, snow plow drivers were able to start cleaning up as soon as it hit the ground. With 12 trucks running 24-hours a day in Topeka and not expecting any more build up, KDOT told 27 News the department plans on focusing on areas that have seen less traffic with more accumulation, and other areas where you have to brake or there's curves. How to stay safe driving in upcoming weather conditions 'I think the road conditions are not going to change probably either good or bad through the night,' KDOT Area Superintendent David Studebaker said. 'What you see now is probably what you're going to have. You know, honestly, probably the biggest threat tomorrow is going to be the cold temperatures.' What makes this snow different from others is it's a dry snow. Studebaker said the wind actually helps KDOT crews out by blowing the dry snow off the highways. That's unlike other snows we've seen, where it sticks once touching the ground. Meanwhile in the capital city, Topeka road crews started prepping and treating the roads as early as 7 p.m. Monday evening and have been out on the roads non-stop running two 12-hour shifts. Public Works Director Steve Groen told 27 News that if you're out driving tomorrow you need be careful for slick spots. Cold temperatures in KS could lead to frozen pipes He said that's because the city's salt and other treatments don't work as well in these conditions. 'We have identified a few more hot spots that we're treating now where there's been areas where there's hills and curves that need attention, but our policy hasn't changed,' Groen said. 'We're still focusing on arterial and collector streets.' Instead of that salt-brine mix, the city is going to be using some sand it's mixed up and crews should be plowing all main roads to the curb As Groen said, the city's policy has not changed, this means the city will only plow residential streets if the streets receive more than six inches of snow. For more weather news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
