Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that his office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has obtained a $150,000 settlement against a former Poplar Bluff Medicaid provider for falsely billing services that weren’t provided. “My Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit works tirelessly to root out, investigate, and prosecute instances of Medicaid fraud across the state of Missouri,” […]
Tag: Medicaid
Missouri Senate set to debate dueling bills extending tax crucial to Medicaid funding
After about three hours of testimony Thursday, the Missouri Senate Appropriations Committee approved two bills to extend medical provider taxes vital to funding the state’s share of Medicaid. The first bill brought up for a vote would extend the taxes for five years, limit the types of contraceptives available to women on Medicaid and block Planned Parenthood from […]
Missouri children and families to benefit from Child Tax Credit expansion
Missouri is ranked 30th among states for overall child wellbeing in a new report, and advocates for kids and families say the pandemic has underscored the need for strong supports. The Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Book shows 17% of Missouri children lived in poverty in 2019, though that number was down from 2010, and […]
Audio: Standing room only audience at Missouri Capitol for Federal Reimbursement Allowance extension issue
Representatives from Missouri’s nursing homes, hospitals, and pharmacies are urging state lawmakers to approve an extension for a critical funding mechanism for the state’s Medicaid program, saying jobs and services are at stake. The special session legislation from Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Dan Hegeman would extend the FRA for five years rather than […]
Judge strikes down Missouri Medicaid expansion as unconstitutional
The push to expand Medicaid eligibility in Missouri was dealt another blow on Wednesday, as a Cole County judge ruled the voter-approved initiative was unconstitutional because it didn’t include a way to pay for 275,000 new enrollees. Plaintiffs, which include three people who would have been eligible for Medicaid on July 1 if the expansion […]
Audio: Missouri’s FRA special session begins today at noon in Jefferson City
The governor has called a special legislative session to extend a key funding mechanism for Missouri’s Medicaid program, warning that failure to extend the FRA would cost Missouri 591-million dollars in the fiscal year 2022. The FRA is the state’s Federal Reimbursement Allowance. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz says lawmakers have been working on […]
Groups urge Missouri legislators to renew Medicaid provider tax
Budget experts warn if Missouri doesn’t renew its Medicaid provider taxes, the state will have to come up with roughly $1.6 billion to make up for it, and cuts would extend to services beyond Medicaid. A bill to renew the tax on hospitals, nursing homes, pharmacies, and other providers stalled before the legislative session concluded […]
Audio: Missouri judge plans to issue a ruling by Wednesday in Missouri’s Medicaid expansion lawsuit
A judge in mid-Missouri’s Cole County expects to issue his decision in Missouri’s Medicaid expansion lawsuit by tomorrow (Wednesday). Brian Hauswirth covered Monday’s hearing in Jefferson City: Three Missouri women are suing the state over the issue of Medicaid expansion. They note 53 percent of Missouri voters approved Amendment Two in August. Their […]
Parson gives Missouri Legislature deadline of high noon Tuesday to reach deal on healthcare tax proposal
(Missouri Independent) – Gov. Mike Parson gave lawmakers a deadline of noon Tuesday to strike a deal to renew medical provider taxes vital to funding Medicaid or accept responsibility for more than $700 million in cuts from the state budget that takes effect July 1. If not, the governor says he will freeze funding in Missouri’s […]
Special session on tax crucial for Medicaid in doubt over Planned Parenthood amendment
(Missouri Independent) – Last Tuesday, Republicans appeared to have reached a fragile consensus around extending a tax crucial to Missouri’s Medicaid finances — opening the door for Gov. Mike Parson to call lawmakers into a special session this week. By Friday afternoon, June 18, that consensus appears to have been derailed, at least temporarily, by disagreements […]
Audio: Missouri’s Medicaid Numbers are Up 141,000 in Past Year
The number of Missourians receiving Medicaid benefits has increased for 11 straight months. The Missouri Department of Social Services says the number has increased from about 940-thousand in June 2020 to about one million, 81-thousand in May. That’s an increase of almost 141-thousand.
Juneteenth is Official: Missouri’s Governor signs order closing state offices for Juneteenth
Missouri’s governor has signed an order that closes state offices today (Friday) in recognition of a new federal statute establishing Juneteenth as a government holiday. The holiday has delayed the Missouri Medicaid lawsuit hearing in Cole County Circuit Court, which was originally set for today. It’s now been rescheduled for Monday afternoon. Juneteenth […]
Missouri State Auditor issues report on Missouri’s use of federal stimulus dollars received through CARES Act funding
State Auditor Nicole Galloway today released her 12th monthly report detailing the state government’s use of federal stimulus dollars intended for the COVID-19 response. Last year, Auditor Galloway announced that her office would examine the state’s distribution and spending of funding received under the CARES Act and other federal assistance programs passed by Congress. The most […]
Missouri hospitals sue to block changes in Medicaid payments
(Missouri Independent) – After obtaining some relief from lawmakers for revenue cuts likely from a change in the way Medicaid pays for outpatient services, Missouri hospitals are asking the courts for relief from a coming change in payments for inpatient care. The Missouri Hospital Association on Friday filed a lawsuit in Cole County alleging the Department of […]
Judge rejects effort to add plaintiffs to Missouri Medicaid expansion lawsuit
(Missouri Independent) – A trial to determine whether Missouri must expand Medicaid coverage as mandated by a 2020 initiative will take place Friday as scheduled, Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem ruled Tuesday. The ruling against adding new plaintiffs to the case came a day after Beetem heard arguments over whether two people who would become eligible for Medicaid […]
Attorney General says Missouri lawmakers can refuse to fund Medicaid expansion
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri lawmakers were not obligated to fund Medicaid expansion, and the courts cannot force the state to pay the medical bills of people who would be eligible under an initiative that amended the state constitution, the state attorney general’s office argued in documents filed Monday in Cole County Circuit Court. The filing from Attorney […]
Audio: Missouri’s Governor weighs in on 13 requests for special sessions and on FRA Issue
Missouri’s governor says the only special session he plans to call this year AT THIS POINT involves congressional redistricting, which is required because of the new U.S. Census data. Governor Mike Parson tells Capitol reporters that he currently has 13 requests for special sessions, on his desk: The requests for special sessions include […]
Prosecutions and convictions lead to barring of four Individuals from participating in government healthcare Services
Due to prosecutions and convictions obtained by the Missouri Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, four Missouri providers were added to the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s exclusion list, meaning that they are excluded from participating in all government healthcare programs. “My Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit works tirelessly to root out, […]