Medicaid

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) is hoping to work with Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) on Medicaid reform, according to a report.

Bachmann told a group of Minnesota business owners that she wanted to work with Ellison on fighting Medicaid fraud in their home state.

"Minnesota is the poster child for Medicaid fraud. If we're going to have a system, we need a system that works for the poor. Right now, it's not working. I've been in communication with Rep. Ellison and hope to work with him on this issue," Bachmann said Monday, according to Patch.com.

If Ellison, the only Muslim member of Congress, does team up with Bachmann, it would be a shift from a recent, tense exchange between the two that began when Bachmann and a number of other Republicans sent letters to the inspectors general of five government agencies (Departments of Defense, Justice, Homeland Security, National Intelligence, and State) suggesting the agencies had been infiltrated by the Muslim Brotherhood and other "radical" groups.

The letters also accused Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the wife of former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) of being an infiltrator for the Islamist group. The letter and the Abedin accusation in particular drew wide criticism from both Democrats and Republicans.

In July, Bachmann also suggested Ellison had ties to organizations that financed terrorists, according to Patch.com.

"Well, [Ellison] has a long record of being associated with CAIR [the Council on American-Islamic Relations] and with the Muslim Brotherhood," Bachmann said during an interview on the Glenn Beck Program. "CAIR is an unindicted co‑conspirator, as stated in the large terrorist financing case that we’ve had in the United States of America and so he came out and essentially wanted to shut down the inspectors general from even looking into any of the questions that we were asking."

Ellison, in response to the letters, challenged Bachmann's accusations.

"A careful review of your 16-page response reveals that you fail to provide any credible evidence for your claims, engage in guilty by association, and continue to rely on discredited sources."

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A new report out Tuesday concludes that six major U.S. states will face mounting fiscal crises as healthcare spending continues to spiral out of control and the federal government tries to rein in its own budget deficit in the coming years.

The non-partisan State Budget Crisis Task Force looked at California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Texas and Virginia.

“The threats and risks vary considerably from state to state, but the storm warnings are very serious,” task force chairmen Paul Volcker and Richard Ravitch said. “The costs, whether in service reductions or higher revenues, will be large. Deferring action can only make the ultimate costs even greater.”

The Supreme Court's landmark healthcare decision has touched off a fiercely partisan debate not just over whether to expand Medicaid, but also whether governors can cut their programs immediately.

Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) was the first GOP governor who announced plans to cut the existing Medicaid program in addition to opting out of its expansion in 2014.

Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) urged the Obama administration Tuesday to block LePage's efforts, and healthcare advocates say the high court's decision doesn't allow immediate cuts.

States's decisions to opt out of the Medicaid expansion in President Obama's healthcare law will deny millions of people access to affordable coverage, according to an analysis by the Urban Institute.

The Supreme Court ruled that states must have the option to opt out of the expansion without losing all of their federal Medicaid funding. Seven states have said definitively that they won't participate, and another eight are leaning against it.

The Affordable Care Act expanded Medicaid eligibility to people whose incomes fall below 138 percent of the federal poverty level. The law also provides subsidies to buy private insurance, but only to people at or above 100 percent of the poverty line.

So people whose incomes fall between 100 percent and 138 percent of poverty are caught in the middle — they're not eligible for subsidies, but they might not be able to get Medicaid, either, if their state opts out of the expansion.

Medicaid expansion already an issue in some governors' races.

How the Medicaid expansion could actually save states money.

Obama court win proves lifeline for health bonds.

FDA targets unapproved drugs containing oxycodone.

Fewer public schools selling sugary drinks.

Soda industry making its case at NY movies, beaches.

Glaxo tries to shake marketing questions on Advair.

The poor economy and rising healthcare costs are driving up states' expenditures on Medicaid, according to a new report from the bipartisan National Governors Association (NGA).

The analysis comes as the Supreme Court prepares to rule on the 2010 healthcare reform law, which included a massive Medicaid expansion, and as cash-strapped states make cuts to the program. 

In its report, the NGA found that Medicaid accounted for the largest share of state spending in 2011 — 24 percent overall — and that this figure represented a steep rise that continued this year, even as federal Medicaid spending declined.

Advocates opened up a new front in the fight against the House GOP's budget cuts: the interests of U.S. children. The children's advocacy group First Focus estimated Tuesday that the House Budget Committee's sequester-replacement bill would amount to "tens of billions of dollars" in cuts to programs that fund healthcare, insurance and nutrition assistance for children.

The attack was compounded by a letter to members of Congress from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which said the reconciliation package fails a "basic moral test." The Reverend Stephen E. Blaire, who leads a conference committee on Human Development, asked for a "circle of protection around programs that serve poor and vulnerable people and communities."

"Poor and vulnerable people do not have powerful lobbyists to advocate their interests, but they have the most compelling needs," he wrote.

The letter cited cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and changes to the Child Tax Credit as especially harmful.

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Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) warned that Medicaid fraud will rise should the Supreme Court strike down the 2010 healthcare law.

"The Affordable Care Act made a significant contribution to federal anti-fraud efforts, both in terms of increased resources and authority to enhance oversight," Kucinich said during a committee hearing Wednesday. 

He added that "aggressive federal anti-fraud activities … will be compromised" if the Supreme Court strikes down the law. 

His remarks came as Republicans attacked the healthcare law's expansion of state Medicaid programs.