Medicaid extensions for new moms grow, may run into limits
States around the country are making it easier for new moms to keep Medicaid in the year after childbirth, a time when depression and other health problems can develop. But tight government budgets and the program’s low reimbursement may ultimately limit this push or make it hard for women with extended coverage to find doctors.
AP, September 5, 2022
 
A commitment to community: Aetna empowers local organizations to help Texans lead healthier lives
Aetna Medicaid, a CVS Health company, announced that it provided donations totaling $450,000 to four community health partners across the state. The donations are supporting the important work of health care providers and amplifying the impact community organizations have on meeting needs, ranging from digital literacy to peer support for families of individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
CVS Health, August 24, 2022
 
CMS Releases Proposed Rule to Improve Medicaid & CHIP Quality Reporting Across States
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a notice of proposed rulemaking to promote consistent use of nationally standardized quality measures in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This will help identify gaps and health disparities among the millions of people enrolled in these programs.
CMS, August 18, 2022
 
Fate of Medicaid Expansion and Filling the Coverage Gap May Depend on Outcome of State Elections
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 includes a number of climate, tax, and health care provisions. Major health care provisions include prescription drug reforms that primarily affect Medicare as well as a three year extension of enhanced subsidies to purchase Marketplace coverage that were included in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). However, a temporary federal policy to close the coverage gap – which was included in the House-passed reconciliation bill — was not included in the IRA and an amendment offered by Senator Warnock to add it back in did not garner enough votes.
KFF, August 17, 2022
 
Medicaid expansion's new life
Republican-led states that have resisted expanding Medicaid for more than a decade are showing new openness to the idea. In the decade-plus since the landmark Affordable Care Act was enacted, 12 states with GOP-led legislatures still have not expanded Medicaid coverage to people living below 138% of the poverty line (or nearly $19,000 annually for one person in 2022). But there's evidence that the political winds are changing in holdout states like North Carolina, Georgia, Wyoming, Alabama and Texas, as leaders court rural voters, assess new financial incentives and confront the bipartisan popularity of extending health
care coverage.
Axios, August 16, 2022
 
Humana to Expand Medicaid Services in Wisconsin with Acquisition of Inclusa, Inc.
Humana Inc. announced that it will acquire substantially all of the assets of Inclusa, Inc., a Managed Care Organization (“MCO”) in Wisconsin that provides long-term care services and supports to approximately 16,600 older adults and adults with disabilities through the state’s Family Care program.
Humana, August 12, 2022
 
Medicaid Study: Expanding Coverage for Adults Also Helps Enroll Children
Expanding Medicaid coverage for adults also helps to cover children, according to a new study by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, the University of Chicago, and MIT. The study examined Oregon’s 2008 Medicaid lottery and found that for every nine adults who gained healthcare coverage, one additional child also enrolled. The research describes the impact of expanded adult Medicaid eligibility on the enrollment of already-eligible children.
Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, August 8, 2022