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Yahoo
3 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.'
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
State readies to award $100M to hospitals for behavioral health teaching programs
Sen. Gayle Harrell helped draft legislation creating state grants for behavioral health care instruction. (Screenshot/Florida Channel. To bolster the health care workforce and improve access to mental health treatment, the Legislature last year agreed to establish behavioral health teaching hospitals and appropriated $100 million in the state fiscal year 2024-25 budget for grants to fortify their efforts. A top official at the Agency for HealthCare Administration (AHCA) told members of the Senate Health Policy Committee Wednesday that Tampa General Hospital, UF Health Shands Hospital, UF Health Jacksonville, and Jackson Memorial Hospital, which submitted grant applications for $100 million in behavioral health teaching funds, should hear from the state soon about how much money to expect. AHCA Deputy Secretary Health Quality Assurance Kim Smoak said the agency is working with the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and reviewing the grant applications the hospitals submitted late last year per the deadlines in the 2024 law (SB 330). She said that AHCA will make its recommendations to legislative leaders on how the money should be awarded by March 1. She also noted it's the Legislature and not the agency that will appropriate the funds. State Sen. Gayle Harrell chaired the Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services when the Senate was crafting the bill and the state budget needed to implement the grant programs. Harrell, a Republican from Stuart, expressed concern that the state wouldn't be able to move the money to the facilities and have the hospitals fully spend it by June 30, when the current budget expires. 'I think we need to anticipate perhaps reverting and reappropriating,' Harrell said. But Smoak stressed that the law lays out the grant application process, including the deadlines, not the agency. The law requires the state to open up the funding opportunity on Nov. 1 and allow the facilities 30 days to submit their detailed grant applications. AHCA is required in statute to evaluate the applications with DCF and submit recommendations on how the grants should be awarded within 90 days. 'We have met all of our time frames. The last timeframe for the agency is the March 1 deadline and we will meet that March 1 deadline,' she said, adding she'd get back with Harrell as to whether the full $100 million will be spent. Senate Health Policy Committee Chair Colleen Burton, a Republican from Lakeland, also touched on the timing of the funding and whether the hospitals will see the money soon. 'Within a few months, you could effectively pay them?' Burton asked. Smoak again said the law requires the agencies to review the plan and submit recommendations to the Legislature by March 1. 'Again, March 1 is the timeframe for us to submit our recommendations to the House and Senate. And we will meet that timeframe.' Burton replied: 'I know you will,' Burton said. 'I have absolutely no doubt.' Larkin Community Hospital, HCA Florida Aventura Hospital, and St. Joseph's Hospital notified the state of their intent to apply for the funds next year. The four hospitals were named behavioral health teaching hospitals in the legislation, making them eligible for the funding. According to the legislation, the grant funds can be used for operations and expenses and for 'fixed capital outlay,' such as facility renovation and upgrades. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Jim Boyd, also created a pathway for other facilities to be designated as behavioral health teaching hospitals beginning July 1, 2025, making them eligible for a second and third round of grant funding. To be designated behavioral health teaching hospitals, the facilities meet criteria laid out in the bill. For instance, they must agree on an affiliation with a state university with a Florida-based medical school. The hospital must agree to help train students in the entire continuum of behavioral health care services, from screenings to crisis stabilization to long term care. The hospitals also must agree to contract with the state to provide access to treatment beds when necessary. In order to qualify for the FY 25-26 grant opportunities, though, the facilities were also required to submit a letter of intent to the state by Jan. 1. The deadlines for the second and third grant applications allow for a little more time. The applications are due by Oct. 1 of each state fiscal year. Similar to the first round of grants, the state is required to keep the funding opportunity open for 30 days and to review the applications with DCF and make recommendations to the Legislature 90 days thereafter. Smoak testified that three facilities had submitted the requisite notice of intent with the state by the deadline. In a follow up request for information, the Florida Phoenix learned the facilities are Larkin Community Hospital, HCA Florida Aventura Hospital, and St. Joseph's Hospital. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
