Maryland Could Lose $75M In Medicaid Reimbursements If Federal Regulations Take Effect

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 06 Feb 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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Maryland Deputy Health Secretary John Folkemer on Friday told members of the state House Health and Government Operations Committee that the state could lose as much as $75 million in federal Medicaid matching funds if new CMS payment regulations take effect, the Baltimore Sun reports. The regulations -- which were announced on Dec. 3, 2007, and take effect on March 3 -- would establish new requirements for reimbursing Medicaid case-management services, which help beneficiaries access needed services such as home care and transportation to physician offices. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that total payments to all states' programs would be reduced by about $1.52 billion (Wheeler, Baltimore Sun, 2/2).

According to Dennis Smith, director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations, the cuts are intended to prevent state and local governments from using Medicaid funds on programs that are not directly related to health care.

Maryland spends about $150 million annually on case management services for Medicaid; about half of that amount comes from the federal government. Folkemer said the cuts would affect care for as many as 200,000 residents (Witte, AP/Washington Times, 2/2). "Every single program we have in the state is out of compliance with these new regulations," Folkemer said, adding, "We think there really would be a reduction in the services provided and in our ability to manage them."

A group of U.S. senators is introducing legislation that would delay the regulation until April 2009, and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) in a letter to HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt requested that the regulation be rescinded (Baltimore Sun, 2/2).

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