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Medicaid is the United States health program for eligible individuals and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the states and federal government, and is managed by the states.

State highlights: Calif. gov. vetoes bill limiting Medi-Cal estate recovery, signs birth control, inmate bills

In a blow to tens of thousands of low-income Californians newly enrolled in Medi-Cal under a provision in the Affordable Care Act, Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday vetoed a bill that would have limited the state's seizure of assets from their estates after they die -- a legal wrinkle that most only discovered after they had signed up for the health care plan for the poor (Seipel, 9/25).

27 Sep 2014

Medicaid expansion concept gains momentum in some initially reluctant states

Reuters reports that this development has to do with financial pragmatism -- especially in GOP-led states that were at the forefront of opposition to the health law. The Associated Press provides a status check on Indiana's expansion request.

27 Sep 2014

Four more hospital systems quit ACO program

Three years after the Centers For Medicare & Medicaid Services selected 32 groups to participate in the Pioneer Accountable Care Organization Model program, they are down to 19 players.

26 Sep 2014

State highlights: N.C. lawmakers still talking about Medicaid revamp; changes to La. health plan for state workers stir controversy

Legislators who couldn't agree this year on how to overhaul North Carolina's Medicaid program plan to spend more time talking about the issue before the General Assembly reconvenes early next year. A legislative oversight panel subcommittee charged with examining Medicaid reform and reorganization scheduled its first meeting Wednesday. Another oversight panel also examining Medicaid governance held its first meeting this month. The House and Senate approved differing versions of legislation to change how Medicaid pays for medical expenses by shifting risk from the state to either medical provider networks or private managed-care companies (9/24).

26 Sep 2014

White House 'reassessing' 2015 enrollment goals; major coverage gains made among Latinos

Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said Wednesday that the health law's insurance programs have reduced the nation's overall uninsured population by 26 percent.

26 Sep 2014

Drug firms shift sales calls from doctors to administrators controlling hospital formularies

Since many hospitals now work to help keep costs down by watching what drugs are used, pharmaceutical representatives must include administrators in their sales pitches. Also in the news, new concerns about the government's plan to open a database next week on drug makers' payments to doctors.

26 Sep 2014

Viewpoints: New insurers suggest health law success; slow response on Ebola

Before Obamacare launched, conservative outlets warned that the law would collapse as insurers shunned the overpriced, overregulated insurance exchanges.

26 Sep 2014

Study: Healthcare.gov costs top $2B

The finding by a Bloomberg Government analysis exceeds the cost estimates provided by the Obama administration. Meanwhile, an administration official says efforts are "continuing, step by step" to improve the health insurance website, but also steers clear of specific pledges.

25 Sep 2014

Administration: Health law brings down hospitals' uncompensated care costs

As part of a report released Wednesday, Obama administration officials cited evidence that hospitals are projected to save $5.7 billion in uncompensated care costs as previously uninsured patients gain coverage through the health law. The savings are most significant in states that expanded their Medicaid programs.

25 Sep 2014

State highlights: Calif. gov. signs rural telehealth bill; Louisiana's ex-health secretary indicted

States around the country are taking advantage of a once little-used policy that allows them to bill Medicaid for the healthcare expenses of prisoners who leave a correctional institution for treatment. Since 1997, states have been allowed to bill Medicaid for the care of inmates who required treatment at a hospital or nursing facility for longer than 24 hours. The provision has drawn new attention this year as millions of Americans, including those serving time in correctional institutions, have become newly eligible for Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Dickson, 9/23).

25 Sep 2014

HCA faces class-action lawsuit for allegedly concealing revenue declines

A Nashville district court judge allowed the shareholders' case to move forward by rejecting the hospital chain's arguments that the plaintiffs had missed 'multiple opportunities' to learn more about the company before buying shares.

25 Sep 2014

Anthem excludes Missouri's BJC Healthcare from network again

The Blue Cross Blue Shield plan won't include the giant health system and its 12 hospitals, including Barnes Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospital, in its 2015 provider network for exchange enrollees. Meanwhile, 350,000 Medi-Cal applicants in California still wait for coverage and Colorado's insurance rates level off.

25 Sep 2014

West Virginia home health community takes part in Save Home Health rally

Representatives of the West Virginia home health community – including Parkersburg area clinicians, family members and advocates as well as national leaders – today took part in a Save Home Health rally to commend special guest Congressman David McKinley (WV-1) and speak out against unprecedented Medicare cuts of 14 percent to home health services that went into effect on January 1 as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

24 Sep 2014

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta integrates GaHIN’s Georgia ConnectedCare product in its HIE application

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (Children's) joins the Georgia Health Information Network (GaHIN), the statewide health information exchange network that electronically connects Georgia hospitals, physicians and clinicians to safely and securely exchange patient health information.

24 Sep 2014

Medicaid News and Research

State highlights: Calif. gov. vetoes bill limiting Medi-Cal estate recovery, signs birth control, inmate bills

Medicaid expansion concept gains momentum in some initially reluctant states

Four more hospital systems quit ACO program

State highlights: N.C. lawmakers still talking about Medicaid revamp; changes to La. health plan for state workers stir controversy

White House 'reassessing' 2015 enrollment goals; major coverage gains made among Latinos

Drug firms shift sales calls from doctors to administrators controlling hospital formularies

Viewpoints: New insurers suggest health law success; slow response on Ebola

Study: Healthcare.gov costs top $2B

Administration: Health law brings down hospitals' uncompensated care costs

State highlights: Calif. gov. signs rural telehealth bill; Louisiana's ex-health secretary indicted

HCA faces class-action lawsuit for allegedly concealing revenue declines

Anthem excludes Missouri's BJC Healthcare from network again

West Virginia home health community takes part in Save Home Health rally

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta integrates GaHIN’s Georgia ConnectedCare product in its HIE application

Californians divided over health law, according to survey

Physicians wage campaign to urge Congress not to allow Medicaid Pay Parity to expire

Viewpoints: Surgery surprise: Out-of-network doctors' bills; consequences of making Medicaid enrollees pay premiums

State highlights: Medicaid bankruptcy ruling could save some nursing homes; high HIV rates in Southern states

Court dumps Obamacare lawsuit brought by doctors

Police, parents learning to better handle mental illness

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