Insurance Coverage and Medical Care

The cost of nursing home/assisted living care has continued to rise. The average daily cost of nursing home care in the United States is $235, with a high of $800 per day in Alaska, and a low of $147 in Oklahoma. The increasing cost of care for loved ones has placed burden on the federal and state governments, as well as the American people searching for cheaper alternatives.

While state policy makers frequently express concern about the increasing percentage of state funds required to fund their Medicaid programs, the programs bring in large amounts of federal dollars to states. Across all states, two thirds of all federal grant funds received by states in 2017 are for Medicaid health services for low-income, disabled and elderly individuals. 

Jason Helgerson, leaving his job this week as New York Medicaid director after 7 years,  blogged in Health Affairs about the lessons he learned.  He says in the post that when his New York experience is combined with the previous 4 years as Wisconsin Medicaid director, he is the nation’s longest-serving Medicaid director. The average tenure of a Medicaid director, according to Helgerson, is 19 months.

Earlier this week, the head of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, Seema Verma, travelled to Arkansas and signed a waiver request to require Medicaid enrollees to work or prepare for a job. The work requirement will only impact the expansion population, specifically childless adults 19 to 49 years old. They will be required to work or participate in activities such as volunteering or vocational training for 20 hours per week. The requirement will be phased in between June and September 2018.

Both chambers in Wisconsin have passed a $200 million reinsurance plan that would provide funds to insurers for high-cost patients’ expenses to prevent ACA marketplace premium increases in 2019. The Governor has come out in support of the program and is expected to sign the bill, according to the Journal Sentinel.