With stimulus money soon to run out, Medicaid benefits are about to drop

Even though unemployment has gone up, the increased federal Medicaid match will expire at the end of the month. As a result, benefits will likely be cut for many. Meanwhile, the New York Times reports that children with Medicaid are far more likely than those with private insurance to be turned away by medical specialists or be made to wait more than a month for an appointment. Also in Medicaid news, a report issued by the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission concluded that Medicaid enrollment in managed care plans continues to go up.

The New York Times: As Number Of Medicaid Patients Goes Up, Their Benefits Are About To Drop
The Obama administration injected billions of dollars into Medicaid, the nation's low-income health program, as the recession deepened two years ago. The money runs out at the end of this month, and benefits are being cut for millions of people, even though unemployment has increased (Pear, 6/15).

The New York Times: Children On Medicaid Shown To Wait Longer For Care
Children with Medicaid are far more likely than those with private insurance to be turned away by medical specialists or be made to wait more than a month for an appointment, even for serious medical problems, a new study finds (Grady, 6/15).

Modern Healthcare: MACPAC Finds Growth In Medicaid Managed Care
About 71 percent of Medicaid enrollees are now enrolled in managed-care programs as states sharply increased their use of the money-saving design variation in recent years, according to the first report of the extent of managed care by the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (Daly, 6/15).

CQ HealthBeat: Commission Report Explores Growing Use of Managed Care In Medicaid
Managed-care enrollment in Medicaid grew from 15 percent of enrollees in 1995 to 47 percent in 2009, according to a new report released Wednesday by the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission And the percentage of Medicaid beneficiaries who are in risk-based managed-care plans is continuing to increase as state officials expand the programs further to populations that traditionally have been a small fraction of those enrolled in managed care, such as people with disabilities (Adams, 6/15).