On March 17, 2021, HHS notified Arkansas and New Hampshire officials that it was withdrawing its approval of demonstration projects which had permitted those states to impose work requirements as a condition for eligibility...more
CMS approved Georgia’s Section 1115 demonstration project to partially expand Medicaid coverage for adults not otherwise eligible for Medicaid coverage with incomes up to 95 percent of the Federal Poverty Line (FPL)—short of...more
This post is the second installment in our blog series looking back on the 10-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and will examine Medicaid expansion under the ACA. Medicaid is joint federal-state program that...more
The Trump administration has issued sweeping new Medicaid guidance, continuing its efforts to cap federal Medicaid funding. The new policy relies on untested legal theories to implement the fundamental “bargain” of block...more
On January 30, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its long awaited and highly anticipated State Medicaid Director Letter (SMD Letter) announcing the “Healthy Adult Opportunity” (HAO) initiative...more
On Thursday, Jan. 30, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the Healthy Adult Opportunity initiative, long-awaited guidance that would enable states to convert Medicaid funding into a block grant for...more
On December 12, 2019, CMS approved South Carolina’s proposal for a demonstration project that would add work, or community engagement, requirements as part of the eligibility determinations for the state’s Medicaid plan. ...more
On November 4, 2019, Georgia officials announced a proposed Section 1115 demonstration waiver, referred to as the “Georgia Pathways Health Waiver,” to expand Georgia’s Medicaid program eligibility for non-disabled adults. If...more
On March 27, 2019, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg for the District of Columbia issued two opinions that struck down the Secretary of HHS’s approval of Medicaid work requirement waivers in Kentucky and Arkansas. ...more
The partial government shutdown is on its 31st day and there’s been little to no change in the landscape. Over the weekend, the President offered a proposal that was rejected by Democrats, leaving us about where we were last...more
On November 20, 2018, Virginia submitted an application to CMS for a Section 1115 demonstration program entitled Virginia COMPASS (Creating Opportunities for Medicaid Participants to Achieve Self-Sufficiency). The application...more
Welcome back. This week, Congress returns to Washington with 10 working days to prevent a partial government shutdown by December 7th. Reaching an agreement on funding is the highest priority of the Lame Duck, and it could...more
This week, President Trump will go before Congress for his first State of the Union address. Will it be olive branches or brickbats? The next deadline for a government-funding bill is February 8th, a week from Thursday. Will...more
On April 25, 2017, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services released for public comment a draft Section 1115 waiver application to implement new eligibility and coverage requirements for MaineCare, the State’s...more
On April 19, 2017, Wisconsin released for public comment a proposed amendment to its BadgerCare Reform Section 1115 demonstration. BadgerCare Reform currently provides coverage to approximately 150,000 childless adults ages...more
While we continue to monitor Congressional efforts to repeal and replace the ACA, we are also monitoring CMS’s efforts to implement the administration’s Medicaid program goals without Congressional action. The future of the...more