Medicaid in Focus at NAPH Hosts Community Leaders Legislative Event - March 2, 2011

Medicaid issues are the talk of the town in Washington in the week leading up to NAPH’s Community Leaders Legislative Event on March 7-8. On March 1, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing on the impact of the Affordable Care Act on states with a particular focus on Medicaid. Three governors – Haley Barbour (R-Miss.), Gary Herbert (R-Utah) and Deval Patrick (D-Mass.) – testified about their states’ experience. On March 2, House Majority Leader announced that Republicans will release a FY 2012 budget resolution with significant entitlement cuts, including cuts to Medicaid, by the end of the month.

Republicans are clamoring to provide greater flexibility for states to manage their Medicaid costs. In particular, some governors are calling on Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act’s Maintenance of Effort on eligibility provision, allowing them to remove beneficiaries from the Medicaid rolls. On Feb. 28, NAPH sent a letter to congressional leaders noting that “the fact is that cutting people off Medicaid does not make them – or their health care costs – disappear.” The letter concludes by asking Congress to “take Medicaid eligibility cuts off the table.” On March 1, NAPH joined other hospital industry organizations in sending a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius with the same message. On March 2, NAPH staff blogged about the difference between “good” and “bad” Medicaid flexibility on the Safety Net Matters blog. These issues will be at the top of NAPH’s agenda when community and hospital leaders from more than 25 member hospitals come to Washington next week.