Scioto Government Affairs Update II

This month we are seeing more states introducing bills or voting on Medicaid Expansion and/or funding. Additionally, states increase funding and resources for behavioral health.

Stateside

Arizona

Home and community-based providers will receive a differential adjusted payment increase of one percent if they log at least one visit in the state’s electronic visit verification (EVV) system for at least 80 percent of members from January 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022.

Florida

Senator Aaron Bean (R-Jacksonville) introduced a $47.8 billion health care spending plan that includes $685.5 million for nursing homes and health care workers providing care to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. About $304 million would go toward nursing home rate increases, provided the funds are used to increase employee wages to at least $15 per hour.

Illinois

Governor JB Pritzker unveiled a $45.4 billion budget proposal, including increased funding for behavioral health services in the state. The budget also proposes funding for Medicaid providers to use for staff bonuses, retention, education, and recruitment.

Indiana

A bill recently passed by the state Senate to reform Medicaid long-term services and supports (LTSS) in part by transitioning the program to managed care could be overturned. The bill would create a pilot program for Medicaid-managed LTSS in 10 counties while continuing to operate a fee-for-service LTSS program in the rest of the state. The bill is expected to be voted on by the House on February 16.

Kansas

Governor Laura Kelly proposed legislation to implement Medicaid expansion in 2023. The expansion would cover about 150,000 adults in the state.

Michigan

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer is seeking $325 million to create a new psychiatric hospital campus in the state, $30.5 million to promote mental health and behavioral health expansions, and $20 million to address racial and economic disparities for Medicaid beneficiaries as part of her proposed fiscal 2023 budget. The proposal also includes $243.3 million to procure Medicaid dental services through a single managed care contract.

Missouri

The Missouri House gave preliminary approval to a constitutional amendment that could undermine Medicaid expansion in the state by requiring the legislature to appropriate funds for the program annually as lawmakers see fit. A full House vote is still needed to refer the measure to the state Senate.

Missouri has nearly 73,000 pending Medicaid expansion applications. Since October 2021, 64,210 individuals have been enrolled through expansion. According to a December report, the state was averaging 70 days to process applications, which is longer than the 45 days allowed by federal law. A spokesperson for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has said the agency is working with Missouri to bring it into compliance.

New York

New York state legislature passed an amendment allowing mental health counselors and marriage and family therapists to be covered by Medicaid. The amendment also removes creative art therapists and psychoanalysts from the list of authorized Medicaid providers.

North Carolina

North Carolina lawmakers held the first meeting of the newly formed Joint Legislative Committee on Access to Healthcare and Medicaid Expansion. The committee, which will meet again on March 1, will address Medicaid expansion, provider shortages, and rural care access, among other issues.

Oregon

Oregon focuses on equity in the submission of its final Medicaid 1115 waiver renewal application to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The application focuses on improving coverage in communities of color, providing benefits to individuals transitioning between coverage systems, increasing value-based payments, and improving equity of care. Oregon launched its Medicaid coordinated care organization program through the waiver in 2012.

Pennsylvania

Governor Tom Wolf proposed on February 8, 2022, increased Medicaid funding for skilled nursing provider rates, the personal care home supplementary payment program, county mental health, and substance use treatment providers as part of the state’s fiscal 2023 budget. The proposal would also extend Medicaid postpartum coverage to one year.

Wolf announced on February 1, 2022, that nearly $28 million in additional federal funding had been distributed to 30 counties for behavioral health programs. Programs will support crisis intervention, telehealth, student assistance programs, residential treatment services, and assisted outpatient treatment.

South Dakota

The state Senate rejected a Medicaid expansion bill. Separately, voters will decide on a Medicaid expansion ballot measure in November.

Wyoming

Wyoming lawmakers may consider a budget amendment to expand Medicaid after the legislature failed to pass an expansion bill this month. The amendment would allow for expansion for two years but would then need to be re-upped.

Resources

Exploring the State of Our Nation’s Mental Health: What Providers Are Saying

Behavioral Health Overview