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Florida’s Legislature received a surprise Medicaid bill this month: $433 million in unpaid insurance reimbursements, owed jointly with the federal government. The $433 million is due to the 11 private companies that have managed the state’s public health insurance program for low-income and disabled people since 2014, when Florida privatized its Medicaid programs to save money. The insurers were underpaid over the past two years, state officials acknowledged on Monday. (Chang, 6/13)

Patient advocacy groups in Kansas remain concerned about a Medicaid drug policy scheduled to take effect July 1. Known as “fail first” or “step therapy,” the policy requires providers participating in KanCare, the state’s privatized Medicaid program, to start patients on less expensive drugs before moving them to more expensive alternatives if medically necessary. (McLean, 6/13)

The number of Tennessee children covered by Medicaid grew by more than 4 percent from 2014 to 2015. ... Federal officials attribute the increase, particularly the growth in coverage around the country, to more families being able to access coverage through the Affordable Care Act. (Fletcher, 6/13)

Medicaid expansion in Louisiana has long been pitched as a way to save the state money, get uninsured people healthier and help stabilize Louisiana's fragmented health care system. But for the New York-based BeneStream, Medicaid expansion also has created a business model. The company's CEO, Benjamin Geyerhahn, founded the company on the idea that because the working poor stood to benefit the most from Medicaid expansion, there were probably going to be companies out there that needed help ensuring their employees enrolled. Geyerhahn was right: Since states began expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, BeneStream has enrolled thousands of Medicaid patients for companies that seek out their services because large numbers of their employees don't earn enough to pay for private insurance. (Litten, 6/13)