CMS extends Medicaid waiver in Massachusetts

The federal government on Tuesday extended a Medicaid waiver in Massachusetts, which was first implemented as part of then-Gov. Mitt Romney's healthcare overhaul.

The waiver will now run through 2014. It is focused primarily on efforts to improve the cost and quality of the Medicaid program and better coordinate care. The waiver provides incentives for hospitals to improve their efforts to integrate their services.

Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approved a controversial Medicaid waiver for California, which allowed the state to make massive cuts in its payments to doctors. CMS also approved a high-profile Medicaid waiver for Texas, while denying a separate proposal to cut off Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood.