Alabama House Approves Bill That Could Provide Additional Funds For Medicaid
The controversial measure would use some of the funds from the state's settlement with BP following the 2010 Gulf oil spill to repay state debts, which could open up general revenue funds for Medicaid. Also, a new study looks at how the health law's Medicaid expansion has impacted rural hospitals.
Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser:
Alabama House Approves BP, Medicaid Settlement
The Alabama House of Representatives Wednesday voted 87 to 9 to approve a compromise BP settlement that would allocate $400 million of the estimated $639 million settlement to repayment of state debts. That should free $70 million for the Medicaid program in 2017. The bill would also allocate $15 million of the money directly to Medicaid, which would give the program the funding it says it needs to maintain services next year, and $105 million in fiscal year 2018. (Lyman, 9/7)
Kaiser Health News:
Lack Of Medicaid Expansion Hurts Rural Hospitals More Than Urban Facilities
It isn’t news that in rural parts of the country, people have a harder time accessing good health care. But new evidence suggests opposition to a key part of the 2010 health overhaul could be adding to the gap. The finding comes from a study published Wednesday in the journal Health Affairs, which analyzes how the states’ decisions on implementing the federal health law’s expansion of Medicaid, a federal-state insurance program for low-income people, may be influencing rural hospitals’ financial stability. Nineteen states opted not to join the expansion. (Luthra, 9/7)