Medicaid Changes Delayed Until January

Adrienne

Post #1

Topic: Health

Title: Medicaid changes delayed until January

Writer: Knezevich, Alison

Publication Name: Charleston Gazette

Date:9/19/2010

Length:about 740 words

Main Ideas:

State health of Virginia officials of Medicaid and the Dept. of Health and Human Resources are putting off the transfer over 10,000 programs and 55,000 people to managed-care programs. They changed the transfer date from Nov. 1st to Jan. 1st. The officials claim that this delay will ensure a "smooth transition" for the members and health-care providers. They will transfer the 55,000 people to three different companies: Carelink, The Health Plan, and Unicare. Also, 160,000 people who receive cash assistance will not be transfered to these companies until January 1st. This change along with adding SSI beneficiaries will cause the state to have to pay an extra 300$ million to help pay for the people needing cash assistance. On the other hand, the new program help the state predict the expenditure of Medicaid so they can adjust accordingly. The new programs also claim to help Medicaid recipients manage chronic diseases and eliminate unnecessary visits. They will also give all of their patients an overall examination to check for untreated and undiagnosed issues. Many people support this integration of behavioral health and medical care at a low cost.

Conclusion: This delay of switching over to the new beneficial programs is criticized heavily. Many doctors and dentists claim it would cause "administrative headaches". This switch could also cause recipients to loose access to the programs if not enough health care providers join because they switched too late. People also worry that the transfer could affect the quality of the services as the transition is being made. It is also a worry to the state which is in debt already and now has to add another 300$ million each year to its payments to the companies. People want evidence that Medicaid programs are going to do what they promised and give good health and behavioral care for a low price.

Opinion: I think it is good that the state is paying money for those who need the financial assistance. Also, if the quality of health care and accessibility will be affected if the members are switched over later, they should switch them as soon as possible. If, on the other hand, it will make it significantly more smooth transition if they wait, I think they should wait. But Medicaid should get the opinions of it's members before the company makes a final decision on when the changes should be made.