OH – Governor Releases 2017 Executive Budget Proposal
February 2017 ~
On January 31, Ohio governor, Kasich, unveiled his Executive Budget for 2017 which incorporates a number of Medicaid initiatives, including expanding managed long term services and supports (MLTSS).
According to the Office of Health Transformation, the initiatives within Governor Kasich’s Budget aim to:
- Coverage Works
- Maintain health care coverage for very low-income Ohioans
- Provide access to services that reduce infant mortality and opioid abuse
- Position Ohio to benefit from federal health care reform
- Require coverage first before using taxpayer dollars for health services
- More details available here
- Improve Care
- Reduce the state share of Medicaid spending $1.8 billion over two years
- Shift remaining populations from fee-for-service into managed care
- Replace expiring sales tax revenue with a stable alternative
- Prioritize Home and Community Based Services
- Serve almost 100,000 Ohioans in home and community based settings
- Increase rates for home and community based services $61 million
- Provide support for individuals who want to self-direct their care
- Rebuild Community Behavioral Health System Capacity
- Integrate Medicaid-reimbursed physical and behavioral health services
- Require benefit parity in Medicaid physical and behavioral health services
- Strengthen community mental health and addiction services and supports
- Reform Provider Payments
- Support performance payments for comprehensive primary care
- Reduce hospital reimbursement 2.2 percent in 2018 and 5.7 percent in 2019
- Move nursing facility reimbursement into managed care
- Adopt a single preferred drug list for the Medicaid pharmacy benefit
- Improve Program Performance
- Integrate all Medicaid eligibility, claims, and provider enrollment functions
- Manage non-emergency medical transportation through a broker
- Coordinate efforts to fight fraud, waste and abuse
- Create a new, mostly federally-funded lead abatement program
Source(s): Office of Health Transformation: Coverage Works, January 31, 2017; Office of Health Transformation: Improve Care Coordination, January 31, 2017; Office of Health Transformation: Prioritize Home and Community Based Services, January 31, 2017; Office of Health Transformation: Rebuild Community Behavioral Health System Capacity, January 31, 2017; Office of Health Transformation: Reform Provider Payments, January 31, 2017; Office of Health Transformation: Improve Program Performance, January 31, 2017;
