The Dallas Morning News reports that doctors, dentists, hospitals, nursing facilities, and home health providers will see cuts in Medicaid reimbursement fees, effective February 1, 2011.
After state leaders directed agencies to reduce spending by 2.5 percent, state Medicaid program managers announced that long term care providers would see a two percent reduction. Leaders seek to reduce spending in the two-year budget before the next budget. An excerpt:
Last May, the leaders culled lists of suggested trims and ended up cutting two-year spending by about 1.4 percent, or $1.25 billion. This time, they told agency heads to proceed on their own. Experts said the 2.5 percent cuts will save no more than $500 million, since they’ll be applied to just a fraction of one year.
The cuts in fees to health care providers in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program are expected to save the state an additional $42 million this year, beyond about $64 million generated by the initial 1 percent reduction, said Stephanie Goodman, a spokeswoman for the Health and Human Services Commission. The commission oversees both programs.
The Texas Health Care Association, which represents long term care providers, is critical of the proposed cuts. President Tim Graves released the following statement:
While we understand state leaders’ concern about the challenging budget situation, these new cuts are an ominous development that will jeopardize facilities’ ongoing ability to provide quality care to Texas’ oldest most vulnerable seniors, and put at risk the key facility jobs that make a key difference in patient outcomes.
These new cuts, on top of recent $25.6 million state Medicaid cuts and federal Medicare cuts of over $1.5 billion over ten years passed as part of health reform – places seniors, caregivers and communities in clear and present danger.
There will be a vigorous, necessary discussion about budgetary priorities in the legislative session, and we intend to aggressively explain why Medicaid funding adequacy is integral to ensuring lawmakers’ local facilities have the resources to keep their doors open, sustain quality care to their oldest constituents, and continue to generate good local jobs.