Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Due To Miscalculation, Kansas' Medicaid Backlog Four Times What State Thought
The state’s Medicaid application backlog has more than quadrupled in size because of inaccurate reports. Kansas thought it had lowered the backlog to 3,480 people; it’s now up to 15,393. Of the new total, 10,961 applicants have been waiting for more than 45 days for the state to process their applications. (Dunn, 6/17)
Meanwhile, in California, a look at what made it into the state's budget and what was left out, including higher payments to Medi-Cal providers —
The $122.5 billion state budget approved this week by California lawmakers will fund a variety of health-related efforts, including training of primary care physicians, dental care for school children and medical interpreters for Medi-Cal, the government-funded insurance program for people with low incomes. But big-ticket health items such as higher payments to Medi-Cal providers and potential Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented adults didn’t make it into the budget agreement for next fiscal year that’s now awaiting the governor’s signature. (Bartolone, 6/20)
