By Catherine Candisky
Federal regulators have smacked down Ohio’s proposal to charge new fees to Medicaid beneficiaries and impose penalties on those who miss payments.
Gov. John Kasich’s administration, which submitted the plan at the direction of the Republican-controlled General Assembly, projected tens of thousands of poor Ohioans would lose tax-funded health coverage while taxpayers saved nearly $1 billion.
Officials with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a letter received today that they denied the proposal because it would strip health coverage from Ohio’s neediest residents.
“We are concerned about the state’s request to charge premiums, regardless of income, to the 600,000 individuals in Ohio’s new adult group, as well as hundreds of thousands of low income parents, foster care youth, and beneficiaries with breast and cervical cancer. CMS is concerned that these premiums would undermine access to coverage and the affordability of care, and do not support the …
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