Medicaid

Considering the country’s divided Congress, Americans shouldn’t hold their breath for major health reform legislation this year. On the other hand, 2023 is shaping up to see some incredibly consequential health policy changes that could impact millions.

A man’s family sued a state-owned nursing home in Indiana for alleged mistreatment. The case will soon be heard by the nation’s highest court, and the outcome could strip millions of vulnerable Americans of the right to sue government agencies when their rights are violated.

Medicaid officials around the country are watching California as it rolls out one of the most ambitious initiatives ever to address Medicaid patients’ social needs in hopes of improving their health.

A federal emergency declaration that has allowed children to receive continuous Medicaid coverage throughout the pandemic could end soon, and health providers are worried.

More states are taking advantage of a provision in the American Rescue Plan that enables pregnant people to keep their Medicaid coverage longer after giving birth.

Research suggests access to public health insurance can help curb recidivism. Reentry organizations in Missouri are working to enroll people in Medicaid after they leave prison to keep them from coming back.

Transferring critically ill patients is becoming increasingly difficult, according to hospital leaders, government officials and industry advocates. Patients are spending hours — or sometimes days — in rural hospital emergency rooms waiting for an ambulance.

Administrative burdens — like haggling with insurers over payments — cut into the already low reimbursement rates Medicaid provides doctors for services.This can disincentivize doctors from accepting Medicaid, according to a new working paper from the University of Chicago.

Medicaid expansion has been a contentious issue across the U.S., and in Missouri, battle lines are drawn at the highest levels of government. State residents voted to expand the health insurance program. But the legislature balked at funding it and the governor says the state will not offer coverage to the estimated 250,000 newly eligible Missourians. That triggered a lawsuit on behalf of three people eligible under expansion. Side Effects Public Media's Sebastian Martinez Valdivia spoke with one of the plaintiffs' lawyers about the case.

After Rebecca and Bruce Austin gave birth to their daughter, they struggled to get pregnant again. So they signed up to become foster parents.“I wouldn’t…