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Wolf Administration to Shift Gears on Medicaid Expansion

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has taken the first step to short-circuit the state’s Healthy Pennsylvania Medicaid expansion in favor of a more traditional approach to Medicaid expansion.
In a news release issued yesterday, the Wolf administration announced that it will withdraw Pennsylvania’s request for a second tier of medical benefits for Medicaid recipients because it intends to change the state’s program to offer the same benefits to all participants.
This will be the first step toward building the state’s Affordable Care Act-authorized Medicaid expansion around the state’s HealthChoices-oriented structure instead of the private market insurance plans favored by Mr. Wolf’s predecessor, former Governor Tom Corbett.
Learn more about the new administration’s first step toward changing the state’s Medicaid expansion effort in this news release from the governor’s office.

2015-02-10T06:00:13+00:00February 10th, 2015|Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on Wolf Administration to Shift Gears on Medicaid Expansion

Shift to HealthChoices Hits Bumps in the Road

Pennsylvania’s switch to HealthChoices to serve nearly the entire state Medicaid population is running into short-term obstacles in parts of the state.
Some recipients, for example, failed to choose a participating managed care plan, were assigned to plans, and now are confused about where to go and how to obtain care.  In other instances, physicians are still negotiating with those plans or waiting to be credentialed for participation.
Some Pennsylvania safety-net hospitals, because of where they are located and their especially large numbers of Medicaid patients, may experience these problems more than the average hospital.
Read more about the challenges Medicaid recipients are encountering during this transition in this Erie-Times News articlePennsylvania State Map.

2012-11-08T06:00:02+00:00November 8th, 2012|Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on Shift to HealthChoices Hits Bumps in the Road

News from the Pennsylvania Health Law Project

The Pennsylvania Health Law Project has issued its May 2012 newsletter.  Included in it are articles on the expanded use of HealthChoices in the Medical Assistance program; information about proposed changes in the Medical Assistance Transportation Program; an update on limits on Medicaid recipients’ use of prescription drugs; the removal of children from the state’s Medicaid rolls; and the 2013 increase in Medicaid payments for primary care providers.
Download the May edition of Health Law PA News, the newsletter of the Pennsylvania Health Law Project, hereHarrisburg, PA capital building.

2012-06-07T06:00:24+00:00June 7th, 2012|Pennsylvania Medicaid laws and regulations, Pennsylvania Medicaid policy|Comments Off on News from the Pennsylvania Health Law Project

HealthChoices Expands, ACCESS Plus Contracts

Harrisburg, PA capital buildingEffective July 1, the Pennsylvania Medical Assistance program’s HealthChoices mandatory managed care program will expand to seven new counties:  Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, and Somerset.  At the same time, the state’s ACCESS Plus Medicaid managed care program will cease operations in those same counties.
Further information can be found in a May 25 Department of Public Welfare (DPW) Medical Assistance Bulletin, which can be found here.

2012-05-31T06:00:15+00:00May 31st, 2012|Meetings and notices|Comments Off on HealthChoices Expands, ACCESS Plus Contracts
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