Soundtrack for today’s RoundUp pessimist readers- http://bit.ly/2vdvt9S
For optimist readers- http://bit.ly/2v3Ugx6
CHECK FOR A PULSE- Looks like Obamacare lives to skyrocket premiums another day (for those of us who still pay premiums, anyway). The Senate’s Skinny Repeal got shot down 51-49, with John McCain helping nix it along with two other Republicans. The night came with high drama, including a call from Trump to McCain (with Pence handing him the phone). McConnel is reported to have said “its time to move on.” My prediction: its done (at least for a long time).
BAY STATE BUSINESSES SUPER EXCITED TO PAY $300M IN FEES TO FUND INCREASING MEDICAID COSTS- Your reward as an employer in MA for providing jobs? Paying your employees’ healthcare costs AND $2k per employee to cover any Medicaid bennies on your payroll. Best. Plan. Ever. It’s a wonderful thing for politicians that 99% of Americans hated high school econ. The Good Guvn’r Baker’s plan is being scaled back, but not dead yet. If you want a vision of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face – forever. (Orwell)
TAKING IT UP A NOTCH- You know all those wacky states trying to add work requirements for non-disabled, non-elderly Medicaid bennies? Well if Senator John Kennedy of LA (cool name, rings a bell) has his way, Federal Medicaid regs will be changed to require it nationwide. Put this one on your watch list.
I WILL GLADLY PAY YOU ON TUESDAY FOR A HAMBURGER TODAY – IL finally started to pay some of the MCO tab last week – $750M in back payments went to plans. Now only about $3.5B more to go to get square. Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away. (Philip K. Dick)
ARKANSAS TRYING TO RESTORE COVERAGE FOR 2,000 IMMIGRANT CHILDREN EXLCUDED FROM MEDICAID BY BILL CLINTON- AR has about 12,000 Marshallese (The Marshall Islands) who got in under a 1986 law. Thing is Bill Clinton’s welfare reform (yeah, he did that) nixed any Medicaid coverage for them. AR DHS submitted a proposal to undo the Clinton coverage ban this week for the kids.
FLICKERTAIL STATE WILL COVER ABA FOR AUTISM- North Dakota Medicaid will cover applied behavioral analysis (ABA) for autistic children as of this week. Attempts by state reps to mandate commercial insurers in the state cover it were unsuccessful.
FARRIS’S FANTASTIC FRAUD FOLLIES– And now for everybody’s favorite paragraph. Let’s start the ticker and see who wins this week’s award. Tammie Sensenig of Denver, PA was sentenced this week to 4 years in prison. She already had a Medicaid fraud conviction, but lied about it and forged a background check when she got a new job as a behavioral health consultant for a company that provides Medicaid services. PA paid out $84k to the already-barred provider. Bharat Patel’s case this week in Norwalk, CT included video of him writing scripts in exchange for cash. He’s accused of stealing $4M from Medicaid by selling scripts to addicts. Meridian Senior Living Group in NC is being prosecuted for a $60M Medicaid fraud, based on comparing staffing levels to billable hours (hint -there’s not enough staff and too many billable hours). Meridian you win this week’s award by a mile! Total taxpayer tab this week: $64.8M. There was a lot more in Medicare but we stick to Caid here!
I WILL BE AT MESC IN A FEW WEEKS, WILL YOU? If so send me a note and let’s meet up.
I WILL BE AT MHPA 2017 IN OCT., WILL YOU? You can check it out here – http://bit.ly/2twCi5L Every 100th registrant will get a free Medicaid Foundations Course registration (our online training course).
That’s it for this week. As always, please send me a note with your thoughts to clay@mostlymedicaid.com or give me a buzz at 919.727.9231. Get outside (It is nearly August and August is hot! Want to read Light in August with me? If 3 or more write in we’ll do a book club on it) and keep running the race (you know who you are).
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