Watson sees opportunity in Medicaid overhaul and possibilities for medical school
State Sen. Kirk Watson, promoting a medical school for Austin, called an overhaul of the state's Medicaid program "an opportunity we have not seen before" to improve medical care and boost academic training for doctors.
Speaking to 100 medical and government officials from Travis and surrounding counties, Watson said that a five-year makeover of Medicaid under way could double the federal dollars that Texas hospitals receive for taking care of the state's poorest residents. The hospitals would share some of that money with clinics and other health programs.
How much a community gets depends on how much local governments invest and how well the hospitals perform on measures being developed, said Watson, a Democrat, in his speech at Central Health's headquarters. Any local governments that help their hospitals get matching federal dollars for Medicaid should participate in the new program, along with any that want to help their communities leverage more federal money, said John Stephens, Central Health's chief financial officer.
Travis County, for example, could boost the $135 million it received in federal matching funds last year to $310 million a year. To leverage that much, however, Central Health would need contributions from the City of Austin and Travis County, Watson said.
http://www.statesman.com/news/local/watson-sees-opportunity-in-medicaid-overhaul-and-possibilities-2213100.html
