Walker's Budget Repair Bill Is Also Front To Eliminate Medicaid In The State

[no limit]

Buried in the bill is a provision that gives unlimited power to Walker's administration to make any kind of changes to medicaid that they want without the approval of the legislature:

As for Medicaid, Walker gives himself as much leeway as possible under the bill that passed the Assembly early Friday but remains hung up in the Senate because of 14 AWOL Democrats who skipped town to stymie efforts to vote on the proposal in that chamber.

Walker's bill gives his administration the power to make any changes necessary to Medicaid to save money, regardless of current law and without approval of the Legislature. Medicaid is a $1.2 billion part of the budget, but even with the freedom the bill gives him, Walker will be hamstrung by federal law that limits how many cost-saving changes states can make without a waiver.

Walker's new health department secretary, Dennis Smith, is a former federal Medicaid official who has advocated that states drop out of the program entirely. That position and others taken by Smith are worrisome to advocates for the poor, disabled and elderly, who are largely the beneficiaries of the program.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=134085454

If somehow democrats reach a deal with Walker to protect collective bargaining I worry this provision will be totally overlooked.

[Me.]

1. Additional Info

“HuffPost's Amanda Terkel reports:

WASHINGTON -- So far, most of the attention on Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's (R) budget repair bill has focused on the section that would strip public employees of their collective bargaining rights. Less noticed is a provision in the 144-page piece of legislation that could dramatically change the state's Medicaid program.

The bill would grant the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) sweeping authority to making changes to the state's Medicaid program -- which covers one in five residents -- with virtually no public scrutiny. According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, Walker's plan would use "emergency" powers to allow DHS to restrict eligibility, raise premiums and change reimbursements -- all moves traditionally controlled by the legislature.”…cont…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/22/wisconsin-gove ...

[PA Democrat]

2. A budget is a moral document.

Someone needs to stick that on a protest sign and stand outside of the hypocrite's church tomorrow.

[CarolT]

3. Real death panels, as deployed by Republicans!

Even more ominously, Dennis G. Smith is a health fascist fanatic. As head of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2007, Smith approved West Virginia's intrusive program of meddling in peoples' lives. They forced people to submit to government dictation of their eating habits, to quit smoking and lose weight, or else have their prescription drug benefits cut. This means patients were forced to submit to quack remedies or be deprived of real medicine! Here are real death panels, as deployed by Republicans!

http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2009/08/Health-Care-Reform-in-West-Virginia-A-Lesson-from-the-States

http://virtualmentor.ama-assn.org/2007/12/ccas2-0712.html

[Iris]

4. kick

[bobbolink]

5. Interesting how there was no attention to this at any of the protests, huh?

I would be surprised if there wasn't also a big cut to low-income housing and homelessness programs being ignored, also.

Big surprise. :puke: