Skip to contents
In This Issue:
On June 20, the House and Senate negotiators reached agreement on the FY04 budget and have forwarded it to Governor Mitt Romney. Romney has until June 30 to review the $22.3 billion spending plan for the fiscal year that starts July 1. Should he choose to veto in the ten-day window, the legislature will reconvene to consider overrides.
“From the Partners HealthCare (PHS) perspective, this compromise version of the budget restores $62 million of the $84 million in cuts we were facing in January, with the remaining $22 million in cuts mostly comprised of Medicaid and uncompensated care pools cuts,” said Tish McMullin, JD, of Government Relations at PHS. McMullin credits the advocacy of the BWPO and other PHS physicians for successfully advocating for the preservation of MassHealth coverage.
Highlights of the House-Senate version of the FY04 State Budget include:
• MassHealth Basic. The plan provides $160 million for a new program of preventive and primary care for 36,000 former MassHealth Basic beneficiaries.
• Medicaid eligibility and rate changes. The budget plan restores payment for methadone maintenance but eliminates Medicaid coverage for certain legal and undocumented immigrants over age 19, except for emergency care. Medicaid coverage for HIV-positive populations is also narrowed to those with incomes higher than 133 percent of poverty.
• Uncompensated care pool. Funding for the pool would total at least $690 million, with statewide hospital liability reduced by $57.5 million, the insurer contribution increased to equal that of hospitals, and a total state commitment of $378 million, including $140 million in federal funds that have historically been diverted from the pool.
• Community-based cardiac surgery. The plan does not include the House proposal for significantly expanding the number of community-based cardiac surgery programs.
• Prescription Advantage. The plan retains the State’s drug benefit for seniors and the disabled and provides $96 million in funding for the program.
According to McMullin, an important element of the House and Senate budget compromise is language that calls on the Romney administration to remedy the problems of the uncompensated care pool by October 1. Executive Office of Health and Human Services Secretary Ron Preston has been directed to consult with stakeholders and make recommendations.