Medicaid Defense

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We shouldn’t settle for Medicaid cuts

During the 2016 session, the state underfunded Medicaid by $60 million, which will result in about $240 million in federal funding being drained from services to patients and the economy.

This is because every dollar that New Mexico disinvests in the program results in four federal dollars leaving the state. Initially, the shortfall was $85 million, but additional savings have since been found. The cuts, which were made during a 30-day budget under extreme circumstances, will severely impact patients, providers, the state economy and the integrity of the program.

The NM Human Services Department (HSD) has already approved over $30 million in provider cuts that will reduce access and is now looking at options that will harm the integrity of the program.

The legislature left it up to the NM Human Services Department (HSD) to decide how to make the cuts. Already, HSD has announced $30 million in cuts to health care providers and is considering cutting benefits, adding eligibility verification procedures and requiring beneficiaries to pay premiums and out-of-pocket costs.

These cuts aren’t inevitable. Advocates support a variety of options that would maintain the integrity of the program and keep vital funds in our state economy.

Health Action NM and our advocacy partners support a variety of options to ensure that these devastating cuts don't go in to effect. NM Voices for Children recently proposed a number of ways to to pay for New Mexico’s portion of the costs, which you can find here. We encourage everyone to submit comments to HSD about patient's experience with having Medicaid coverage, data that show the difficulty Medicaid patients have in accessing care and concerns about what may happen to access to care if the cuts go through.

TAKE ACTION

1) Submit online comments on HSD’s public comment form.
2) Share your story with Health Action NM by emailing it to

. We will abide by any confidentiality requests that you have.
3) Commit to join a phone banking session this summer to raise awareness about the cuts and promote solutions. Click here to volunteer.
4) Share a message about this issue on Facebook or Twitter.
5) Sign up for monthly Medicaid Defense mobile updates by texting “Medicaid” to 51555 or click here.

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