Some states still on fence on Medicaid expansion; 'BadgerCare Plus' providers complain about rates in Wis.

A roundup of state Medicaid news.

The Associated Press/The Washington Post: A State-By-State Look At The Medicaid Expansion Part Of Obama's Health Care Law
President Barack Obama's health care law would expand the number of people on Medicaid by raising the income ceiling for eligibility, but some states aren't so sure they want to participate because they are worried they might not be able to ultimately put up their share of funding (10/18).

Baltimore Sun: Protesters Accuse Hopkins Of Withholding Medicaid Funds
The owner of a Baltimore substance abuse center led a protest of more than 120 people Thursday morning at the doors of Johns Hopkins Hospital, saying the medical giant owes his organization more than $100,000 in Medicaid payments. ... The Hopkins affiliate, Priority Partners, is one of several managed-care organizations that has a contract with the state to manage Medicaid claims. Much like an insurance company, Priority Partners pays clinics, doctors, hospitals and other organizations that treat Medicaid patients (Walker, 10/18).

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Is BadgerCare Plus In Trouble In Southeastern Wisconsin?
The system of managed care for the almost 300,000 children and adults covered by BadgerCare Plus in southeastern Wisconsin may be crumbling. At issue: At least three of the four organizations managing the BadgerCare Plus program in the region say they are losing money on it. ... United HealthCare, is dropping its contract with the state at the end of this month. Now a second, Molina Healthcare Inc., is warning it ... [is] losing millions of dollars on the program because the state isn't paying it nearly enough to cover the medical claims filed by its BadgerCare Plus patients (Boulton, 10/18).

In the news regarding other low-income health care assistance -  

(St. Paul) Pioneer Press: MinnesotaCare Changes Lie Ahead As Political Divide Over Health Care Deepens
The creation of the MinnesotaCare health insurance program in 1992 was lauded as a shining example of bipartisanship at the state Capitol.  Together, Republicans and DFLers pushed for the program, which was designed to provide coverage for relatively low-income Minnesotans who couldn't get insurance from their employers or through Medicaid.  ... [But] early indications suggest that when DFL members and Republicans return to the Capitol next year, they will offer starkly different responses to the question of how to reform a program that is costing the state more than $200 million this year (Snowbeck, 10/18).