Trump’s Return Puts Medicaid on the Chopping Block
Republicans in Washington are working on plans to shrink Medicaid, the nearly $900-billion-a-year government health insurance program that covers 1 in 5 Americans.
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Republicans in Washington are working on plans to shrink Medicaid, the nearly $900-billion-a-year government health insurance program that covers 1 in 5 Americans.
Health is unlikely to be a top priority for the new GOP-led 119th Congress and President-elect Donald Trump. But it’s likely to play a key supporting role, with an abortion bill already scheduled for debate in the Senate. Meanwhile, it’s unclear when and how the new Congress will deal with the bipartisan bills jettisoned from the previous Congress’ year-end omnibus measure — including a major deal to rein in the power of pharmacy benefit managers. In this “catch up on all the news you missed” episode, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join Ńîąóĺú´«Ă˝Ň•îl Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Legislative leaders say the decision whether to renew Montana’s Medicaid expansion program this year will loom over behavioral health spending and hospital regulation, among other topics.
As Gov. Gavin Newsom enters the second half of his final term, health care stands out as his most ambitious but glaringly incomplete initiative for California residents. The issue will likely shape his national profile for better or worse. And now, Donald Trump brings a new wrinkle.
Advocates say it is discrimination and are arguing for “insurance fairness” on the grounds that people who have joints surgically replaced typically don’t face the same kinds of coverage challenges.
Ńîąóĺú´«Ă˝Ň•îl Health News staff made the rounds on national and local media in the last two weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
A whistleblower suit alleged a health insurer bilked Medicare by exaggerating how sick patients were.
Donald Trump’s first administration advanced rules forcing hospitals and insurers to reveal prices for medical services. Employers don’t want to risk backtracking during Trump’s second administration.
A man in Chicago with a troubling symptom underwent a common procedure. Then he wanted to know why the hospital charged nearly three times its own cost estimate.
The number of new and returning enrollees using healthcare.gov — the federal marketplace that serves 31 states — is well below last year’s as of early December. Also, a Biden administration push to give “Dreamers” access to Obamacare coverage and subsidies is facing court challenges.
A group of Democratic senators asked the Government Accountability Office to examine a Georgia program that requires some Medicaid enrollees to work, study, or volunteer 80 hours a month for coverage. They cited Ńîąóĺú´«Ă˝Ň•îl Health News’ reporting, which has documented the program’s high costs and low enrollment.
The outpouring of anger at health insurers following the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson continues a cycle of rage that dates back decades.
Donald Trump’s second term is reigniting mistrust in health services among California immigrants, making it harder for community health workers to get people enrolled in Medi-Cal. Yet the president-elect is also seen as someone who could improve their lives with a better economy, even if that means forgoing health care.
Minor interventions are increasingly being rebranded and billed as surgery, for profit. This means a neurologist spending 40 minutes with a patient to tease out a diagnosis can be paid less for that time than a dermatologist spending a few seconds squirting a dollop of liquid nitrogen onto the skin.
The shocking shooting death of UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive in Midtown Manhattan prompted a public outcry about the problems with the nation’s health care system, as stories of delayed and denied care filled social media. Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump continues to avoid providing specifics about his plans for the Affordable Care Act and other health issues. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat join Ńîąóĺú´«Ă˝Ň•îl Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Francis Collins, who was the director of the National Institutes of Health and a science adviser to President Joe Biden.
A federal judge sided with 19 states seeking an injunction against a Biden administration rule allowing recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals to enroll in Affordable Care Act coverage and qualify for subsidies amid the annual open enrollment period.
Ńîąóĺú´«Ă˝Ň•îl Health News staff made the rounds on national and local media in recent weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
As Donald Trump prepares to reenter the White House with a Republican-controlled Congress, health officials and community advocates in California worry that large-scale Medicaid cuts could be enacted as soon as next year. More than 60% of California’s $161 billion Medi-Cal budget comes from Washington.
Georgia’s ability to process applications for Medicaid and other public benefits has lagged since the launch of Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s “Pathways” Medicaid work requirement, leaving Georgia with persistently slow Medicaid application processing times.
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