Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Wyoming Inches Toward Medicaid Expansion
Lawmakers in Wyoming are working toward an agreement that would allow the state to accept hundreds of millions of federal dollars to expand the state鈥檚 Medicaid program. Members of the Republican-dominated legislature will meet Wednesday to craft a compromise between two competing measures that would allow an estimated 17,600 low-income Wyoming residents to gain coverage. (Wilson, 1/28)
California鈥檚 Medi-Cal program has grown to cover nearly half of the state鈥檚 children, causing policymakers and child advocates to question the ability of the taxpayer-funded program to adequately serve so many poor kids. In the past two years alone, the program has added nearly 1 million young people up to age 20, including those newly eligible for Medi-Cal coverage under the Affordable Care Act. The increase brings the total number of young people on Medi-Cal to 5.2 million, more than ever before. (Ostrov, 1/29)