Gov. McCrory wants to make sure the current Medicaid program is fixed before potentially extending its eligibility requirements. States have the option of expanding their Medicaid programs to cover people earning up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level in 2014 under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The North Carolina legislature voted down the idea earlier this year.
“I will not sacrifice quality care for the people truly in need, nor risk further budget overruns by expanding an already broken system,” he said in the release.
He said the state government is in the process of engaging stakeholders, reviewing federal regulations and analyzing data in order to develop a reform plan, which will be completed next spring.
The statement reflects a shift in the governor’s stance since last week, when he said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation that North Carolina might have to expand Medicaid whether state lawmakers want to or not. At the time, Gov. McCrory said a federal regulation under the reform law that allows hospitals to presume Medicaid eligibility could hurt the state financially if it doesn’t expand health insurance coverage for low-income residents.
Under the regulation, hospitals are still required to follow the Medicaid criteria in their state, and the regulation doesn’t permit them to give “presumptive eligibility” to patients who would have qualified under the expansion in states that don’t extend their Medicaid programs, according to CMS.
More Articles on Medicaid Expansion:
Gov. Pat McCrory: PPACA Rule Could Necessitate North Carolina Medicaid Expansion
Ohio Panel Approves Medicaid Expansion
Analysis: 5.2M People Could Fall Into PPACA Coverage Gap
