TNC
02-26-2005, 09:50 PM
Panel denies extra cash to Medicaid
Lawmakers say they're frustrated with rising costs
Lawmakers frustrated with out-of-control Medicaid expenses on Thursday blocked an attempt to pump another $15 million of taxpayer money into the program for the poor and disabled, hoping to hold the money hostage until actual reforms are enacted.
The vote to bar the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee from adding the emergency spending to this year's $229 million Medicaid budget surprised the 20-member panel, which sat quiet after a 13-7 vote kept the budget shuttered.
The vote was one shy of a two-thirds majority needed for what is typically a procedural vote to consider adding money to a current year budget.
Lawmakers did give more money to the state's prison budget, despite arguments, mostly from Democrats, that the state's sentencing laws should be scrutinized before another $4.4 million for prisons is dished out.
Rexburg Republican Sen. Brent Hill led the charge against further funding Medicaid, lamenting that the program continues to siphon the state's $2 billion budget, and there appears to be no end in sight.
Medicaid, Hill pointed out, "is taking from every other program we have in the state. Because of the increase in the Medicaid budget, we are taking from child protection, substance abuse, domestic violence, education — from all of these other programs."
State legislatures across the country are grappling with the same problem. Nearly every state blames Medicaid for budget stresses.
Idaho's Medicaid spending has grown 935 percent since 1990, and additional Medicaid clients, more use of services and higher cost for those services continue to dog the state budget.
But Rep. Margaret Henbest, a Boise Democrat, said while lawmakers struggle to find solutions, they shouldn't just cut off the program's funding. "These are people who are in need of healthcare services and can't receive it (or) pay for it themselves," Henbest warned.
Committee co-chairwoman Maxine Bell of Jerome agreed that Medicaid "has replaced higher ed in the hierarchy of the funding that we do." But, said Bell, lawmakers seem to be more determined than ever to find some solutions.
"I have a little more hope," Bell said, that "we're going to see some things change."
Hill was joined by Reps. Dick Harwood of St. Maries, Cliff Bayer of Boise and Scott Bedke of Oakley and Sens. Gerry Sweet of Meridian, Monty Pearce of New Plymouth and Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron of Rupert in blocking the Medicaid budget from getting additional cash.
Hill left open the possibility that he would rescind his objection if he sees that lawmakers are making an effort to reform the program — reforms that have been talked about for several years, but have always eluded them.
Health and Welfare Director Karl Kurtz said he doesn't know what he could legally do if lawmakers don't provide the cash to pay bills for the rest of the year. The options are few.
"One is you just tell the providers that they cannot accept new patients. The other thing is you just don't pay providers. When we run out of money, we quit," Kurtz said.
Perhaps another option would allow the department to push its Medicaid bills into the next fiscal year, but that would ultimately compound the spending problems of the next legislative session.
Committee members wouldn't entertain a similar spending freeze for the Department of Correction budget, despite Henbest's attempt to apply the same reform logic that was used to block the Medicaid money.
Henbest said the state should be focusing on treatment programs instead of filling cells.
"We continue to feed the pipeline," Henbest said. "I'm putting my foot down."
Bell, though, said there's a difference for prison spending.
"These are bad people. They're already out there. We can't turn them out," Bell said. "These people have to be kept away from little ones and people who can't defend themselves."
Sweet said, "I do not want murderers, rapists, sex offenders and perverts released from there that will prey upon our children."
Sen. Shawn Keough of Sandpoint and Rep. Kathy Skippen of Emmett were the only Republicans to join the committee's four Democrats on the vote to keep the prison budget from getting more money. The panel voted unanimously to give the agency $4.4 million to pay for additional inmate beds and medical costs for the current budget year.
Lawmakers say they're frustrated with rising costs
Lawmakers frustrated with out-of-control Medicaid expenses on Thursday blocked an attempt to pump another $15 million of taxpayer money into the program for the poor and disabled, hoping to hold the money hostage until actual reforms are enacted.
The vote to bar the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee from adding the emergency spending to this year's $229 million Medicaid budget surprised the 20-member panel, which sat quiet after a 13-7 vote kept the budget shuttered.
The vote was one shy of a two-thirds majority needed for what is typically a procedural vote to consider adding money to a current year budget.
Lawmakers did give more money to the state's prison budget, despite arguments, mostly from Democrats, that the state's sentencing laws should be scrutinized before another $4.4 million for prisons is dished out.
Rexburg Republican Sen. Brent Hill led the charge against further funding Medicaid, lamenting that the program continues to siphon the state's $2 billion budget, and there appears to be no end in sight.
Medicaid, Hill pointed out, "is taking from every other program we have in the state. Because of the increase in the Medicaid budget, we are taking from child protection, substance abuse, domestic violence, education — from all of these other programs."
State legislatures across the country are grappling with the same problem. Nearly every state blames Medicaid for budget stresses.
Idaho's Medicaid spending has grown 935 percent since 1990, and additional Medicaid clients, more use of services and higher cost for those services continue to dog the state budget.
But Rep. Margaret Henbest, a Boise Democrat, said while lawmakers struggle to find solutions, they shouldn't just cut off the program's funding. "These are people who are in need of healthcare services and can't receive it (or) pay for it themselves," Henbest warned.
Committee co-chairwoman Maxine Bell of Jerome agreed that Medicaid "has replaced higher ed in the hierarchy of the funding that we do." But, said Bell, lawmakers seem to be more determined than ever to find some solutions.
"I have a little more hope," Bell said, that "we're going to see some things change."
Hill was joined by Reps. Dick Harwood of St. Maries, Cliff Bayer of Boise and Scott Bedke of Oakley and Sens. Gerry Sweet of Meridian, Monty Pearce of New Plymouth and Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron of Rupert in blocking the Medicaid budget from getting additional cash.
Hill left open the possibility that he would rescind his objection if he sees that lawmakers are making an effort to reform the program — reforms that have been talked about for several years, but have always eluded them.
Health and Welfare Director Karl Kurtz said he doesn't know what he could legally do if lawmakers don't provide the cash to pay bills for the rest of the year. The options are few.
"One is you just tell the providers that they cannot accept new patients. The other thing is you just don't pay providers. When we run out of money, we quit," Kurtz said.
Perhaps another option would allow the department to push its Medicaid bills into the next fiscal year, but that would ultimately compound the spending problems of the next legislative session.
Committee members wouldn't entertain a similar spending freeze for the Department of Correction budget, despite Henbest's attempt to apply the same reform logic that was used to block the Medicaid money.
Henbest said the state should be focusing on treatment programs instead of filling cells.
"We continue to feed the pipeline," Henbest said. "I'm putting my foot down."
Bell, though, said there's a difference for prison spending.
"These are bad people. They're already out there. We can't turn them out," Bell said. "These people have to be kept away from little ones and people who can't defend themselves."
Sweet said, "I do not want murderers, rapists, sex offenders and perverts released from there that will prey upon our children."
Sen. Shawn Keough of Sandpoint and Rep. Kathy Skippen of Emmett were the only Republicans to join the committee's four Democrats on the vote to keep the prison budget from getting more money. The panel voted unanimously to give the agency $4.4 million to pay for additional inmate beds and medical costs for the current budget year.