Planned Medicaid Cuts Cause Rift With States
From New York Times:
The White House is clashing with governors of both parties over a plan to cut Medicaid payments to hospitals and nursing homes that care for millions of low-income people.
The White House says the changes are needed to ensure the "fiscal integrity" of Medicaid and to curb "excessive payments" to health care providers.
The National Governors Association said it "would impose a huge financial burden on states," already struggling with explosive growth in health costs.
A letter signed by 82 House Republicans says it "would seriously disrupt financing of Medicaid programs around the country."
A bipartisan group of 50 senators recently urged President Bush to scrap the proposed rules, which were set forth in his 2007 budget and could be issued before the end of this year.
Under the White House plan, the federal government would reduce Medicaid payments to many public hospitals and nursing homes by redefining allowable costs.
It would also limit the states' ability to finance their share of Medicaid by imposing taxes on health care providers.
Bush administration officials say states have used creative bookkeeping and accounting gimmicks to obtain large amounts of federal Medicaid money without paying their share.
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