Medicaid programs face cuts

From the New York Times:

About half of the state legislatures nationwide are scrambling to plug gaps in their budgets, shot through by rapid declines in corporate and sales tax revenue, distressed housing markets and a national economy on the verge of a recession.

Many states are reporting their largest budget shortfalls since the recessions of 2001 and 1991-2.

… As of last week, at least 25 states were expecting budget shortfalls for the 2009 fiscal year, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, findings that are consistent with other state roundups and an informal phone survey by The New York Times.

… Ballooning health care costs have vexed many states over the last decade, and nine are now trimming their Medicaid programs, particularly programs for children … In Rhode Island, Gov. Donald L. Carcieri wants to take roughly 2,000 children of illegal immigrants off the Medicaid rolls. In the last recession, nearly 35 states cut eligibility for public health programs, causing well over one million people to lose health coverage, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 17th, 2008 at 4:48 am and is filed under Medicaid/Medicare, disabilities. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post