Iowa House passes Medicaid cleanup bill in effort to address managed care woes

[progressoid]

The Iowa House of Representatives approved legislation Thursday that lawmakers said would begin to fix some of the problems that have plagued the state's Medicaid system.

“We have all been contacted and received emails from our providers and Medicaid members on the implementation of managed care," said Rep. Dave Heaton, R-Mount Pleasant. "We know that there have been some bumps in the system, and the governor has recognized some of those difficulties that we are having. As a Legislature, we thought this bill and this amendment was an opportunity to address some of these concerns and encourage our managed care program to operate smoother."

In April 2016, three for-profit companies took over management of Iowa’s $5 billion Medicaid program, which provides health care for more than 500,000 poor or disabled Iowans.

That transition to managed care has been rocky, which Gov. Kim Reynolds acknowledged publicly during her Condition of the State address in January.

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2018/03/08/iowa-house-passes-medicaid-cleanup-bill-effort-address-managed-care-woes/409129002/

[Hoyt]

2. Chances are he prefers greater reimbursement offered by private insurance, and especially cash

based patients. But, easier to blame it on government than to admit greed.

[rurallib]

3. It will never be fixed as long as it is privatized

This is literally the lipstick on the pig bill