Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Highlights Health Developments In State Budgets

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 29 Feb 2008 - 10:00 PDT

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Summaries of recent news about health care and the budgets of Maryland and New Jersey appear below.

• Maryland: Lawmakers are looking to cut at least $200 million from Gov. Martin O'Malley's (D) proposed fiscal year 2009 budget to compensate for an economic downturn, the Baltimore Sun reports. The cuts could reach $300 million depending on the updated revenue projections that will be released next week, according to lawmakers. Part of the savings could come from modifying a plan to expand the state's Medicaid program, which was approved during the special session (Smitherman, Baltimore Sun, 2/27).
  
  
• New Jersey: Gov. Jon Corzine (D) on Tuesday proposed a $33 billion FY 2009 state budget that includes cuts to hospital payments, the New York Times reports. The proposed budget is $500 million less than the state's 2007 budget, or about 4.4% less when accounting for inflation. Corzine has proposed reducing state funding for hospitals by $144 million, or by 14% (Chen, New York Times, 2/27). New Jersey Hospital Association officials said they expect a $108 million cut for hospitals that treat uninsured and low-income patients, which could result in additional hospital closings and affect residents' access to health care. Other proposals included in Corzine's budget would require Medicaid beneficiaries to contribute copayments; reduce funding for NJ FamilyCare, the state's version of SCHIP; and cut the state Department of Health and Senior Services budget by $180 million. The proposed budget would provide $902 million to hospitals in FY 2009 (Groves, Bergen Record, 2/27). The full details of the budget will be released in the next week or so, according to the Times (New York Times, 2/27).

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