Feds to state: Delay Medicaid transition until March
BUSINESS RECORD STAFF Dec 18, 2015 | 4:52 pm
1 min read time
173 wordsAll Latest News, Government Policy and Law, Health and Wellness, InsuranceFederal officials told Iowa on Thursday it doesn’t believe the state is ready to transition its $5 billion Medicaid program to managed care on Jan. 1, delaying the move until March 1, the Cedar Rapids Gazette reported.
It was good news for Medicaid recipients and many health providers, who have said Gov. Terry Branstad’s plan to transition Iowa’s $5 billion Medicaid system to four out-of-state private care companies by Jan. 1 has been rushed.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services “expects that we will ultimately be able to approve Iowa’s managed-care waivers. However, we do not believe that Iowa is ready to make that transition on Jan. 1,” according to a letter addressed to Iowa Medicaid Director Mikki Stier.
CMS Director Vikki Wachino told Stier in the Dec. 17 letter that while the state has made progress in some areas, her agency identified “significant gaps” when it was in Iowa last week conducting readiness reviews. She added that a “transition on Jan. 1 would risk serious disruptions in care for Iowa Medicaid beneficiaries.”
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