government
GOP governors unveil Medicaid reform wish list
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Sept. 12, 2011
Congress should repeal the national health reform law's Medicaid expansion and allow state Medicaid programs to pay physicians and others based on "quality care and value-based criteria," bundle payments, and set program eligibility levels, according to Medicaid reform suggestions released Aug. 30 by the Republican Governors Assn.
The RGA issued the 31 recommendations in response to a May request for Medicaid reform ideas by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Fred Upton (R, Mich.) and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R, Utah), the highest-ranking GOP member on the Senate Finance Committee.
"Medicaid is in dire need of reform," said RGA Chair Bob McDonnell, Virginia's governor. "This report offers realistic ideas about how to fix Medicaid from the states' perspective."
Other suggestions include requiring Congress to pay for the health care costs of undocumented immigrants and allowing a state to contract with a single managed care organization in situations where patient volume is insufficient to justify the minimum requirement of two insurers.
Twenty-nine GOP governors provided input for the report, which is available online (link).
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2011/09/12/gvbf0912.htm.
