The Legislature may do something that could sort of be called “Medicaid expansion”, if only for lack of a better term, but we would all do well to remain deeply skeptical of what they might consider.
It’s constitutional – deal with it
The once taboo subject of expanding Medicaid in Texas has been broached in recent weeks by some Republicans and GOP-friendly organizations, as the Legislature prepares to reconvene early next year.
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In 2013, state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond, wanted to use federal dollars and a Medicaid waiver to create a new insurance program for poor Texans, but he was never able to build much support among his Republican colleagues.
“Last time, everybody was pretty reactionary,” said Zerwas, a physician. “We were playing defense.”
But with Perry leaving office in January and a new legislative session set to begin, Zerwas and his allies once again are pushing for a new program.
The difference this time is the dialogue is more thoughtful and the effort is more organized, he said.
Zerwas and other legislators had the chance after the 2013 session to go back to their districts and listen to their constituents. Many expressed interest in insuring people who can’t get coverage under the new law, he said, but many more have indicated that they want to see the already stressed, safety-net hospitals get some relief from being forced to care for so many uninsured people.
Gov.-elect Greg Abbott said on the campaign trail that he opposed Medicaid expansion, but spoke of seeking a block grant from the federal government to reform Medicaid in the state, echoing some other Texas Republicans.
The words “block grant” are your first clue that despite the sincere words of people like Rep. Zerwas, this is the same old song and dance with some fresh wrapping paper on it. Block grants are a shibboleth and a mirage. The Bush administration refused to grant waivers to allow for these things. President Obama will nominate Ted Cruz to be its next Attorney General before his administration will consent to block grants for Texas.
The Texas Association of Business, an influential group with close friends in the Republican Party, has come out again in support of expanding Medicaid, just as it did in 2013.
Bill Hammond, president of the organization, said it will take a “massive effort” in 2015 to increase coverage for Texans, but it’s a fight he is willing to take on.
“It just makes sense for us from the business perspective,” he said.
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Dan Stultz, president and CEO of the Texas Hospital Association, said in a presentation that hospitals need meaningful coverage expansion.
Stultz told the Associated Press earlier this year that hospitals agree with Perry that the Medicaid program is “severely flawed,” but he also said that “without the Medicaid expansion, many will remain uninsured, seeking care in emergency rooms, shifting costs to the privately insured and increasing uncompensated care to health care providers.”
The Texas Medical Association, one of the most powerful lobbies in state government, also supports allowing state leaders to work with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to come up with a solution that fits Texas’ health care needs.
The association’s leaders are pushing the Legislature to create a concept, as it says on the group’s website, that “works for the state and helps Texans in the coverage gap get affordable and timely care.”
The “support” these organizations have for Medicaid expansion doesn’t extend to supporting candidates that support Medicaid expansion, of course. In that way, it’s like their support of immigration reform. Fill in your own definition of insanity, and go search healthcare.gov for insurance policies that would cover that affliction.
Be all that as it may, we now have an interim report with recommendations on the subject.
Texas should pursue a waiver from the federal government for more flexibility to administer Medicaid, heighten the “visibility” of the state’s mental health programs to “ensure adequate leadership and accountability” and consolidate its three major women’s health programs, the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services said Monday.
In a lengthy report, the interim committee released its recommendations for the 2015 legislative session, addressing charges from outgoing Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to expand access to women’s healthcare, improve the state’s mental health services, stop prescription drug abuse, and provide affordable care options for the state’s uninsured — all under the constraints of a fiscally conservative budget.
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Among the report’s other recommendations:
Texas should not expand Medicaid to cover low-income adults, a key tenet of federal health law. Lawmakers should, however, seek to renew the “transformational” Medicaid waiver that, among other things, helps reimburse hospitals for the emergency care they provide to the uninsured. Notably, the report does not rule out pursuing a transformational waiver like the one the feds approved in Arkansas, which provided for a private health coverage expansion to low-income people using the Medicaid expansion dollars made available under the Affordable Care Act.
See here for some background, and here for a copy of the report. Rather than get distracted by shiny objects, read these two paragraphs from page 23:
The state’s first order of business must be to repair this broken Medicaid system and bring these costs under control. By enacting common-sense reforms such as cost sharing, health savings accounts, variable benefit packages, and high-deductible emergency care plans, Texas can reform its Medicaid program in a way which contains costs, encourages personal responsibility, and lessens the burden of providing uncompensated care.
Unfortunately, most of these innovative solutions are not able to be implemented under the strict Medicaid guidelines imposed by the federal government. By receiving a federal waiver from these restrictions, Texas can finally have the flexibility it needs to design a sustainable and cost-effective Medicaid program that is appropriate for the citizens it serves and accountable to taxpayers.
Like I said, let’s keep our eyes on the ball. The feds have been making noise about that “transformational” waiver not being a guarantee if Medicaid isn’t expanded in some acceptable form. What “acceptable” looks like is the hundred billion dollar question. The feds have been fairly accommodating to recalcitrant states, but there’s only so far they’ll go. Block grants ain’t happening, and those pet rocks masquerading as “common sense reforms” are more smoke than substance. Texas is going to have to give something to get something, and I’ll believe that will happen when I see it. A press release from Sen. Charles Schwertner, the chair of the HHS committee, is here, and Texans Together has more.