NCHC

National Coalition On Health Care

  • About Us
    • Members and Supporters
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff
    • Annual Reports
  • Policy
    • COVID-19 Response
    • Make Prescription Drugs More Affordable
    • Eliminate Surprise Medical Billing
    • Make Health Care Affordable and Accessible
    • Promote a High-Value Health Care System that Supports Vulnerable Populations
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Newsroom
    • Press Releases
    • NCHC In The News
    • Policy Correspondence
    • Fact Sheets & Issue Briefs
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Member
    • Become a Funder
    • Career Opportunities & Internships
  • Contact Us

NCHC Letter Opposing Elimination of the State Option to Expand Medicaid Eligibility

February 1, 2017 By National Coalition on Health Care

Tweet
Share

Please find the PDF version here.

 

Dear Chairman Walden, Ranking Member Pallone, Chairman Hatch and Ranking Member Wyden:

The National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC) opposes the repeal or defunding of the state option to expand Medicaid eligibility to beneficiaries with incomes at or below 138% of poverty. The repeal or defunding of this option would undermine important reform initiatives at both the state and federal levels and make health care less affordable for millions of Americans.

NCHC is the nation’s largest, most broadly representative nonpartisan alliance of organizations focused on health care. Our members and supporters include nearly 90 of America’s leading associations of health care providers, businesses and unions, consumer and patient advocacy groups, pension and health funds, religious denominations, and health plans. They represent—as employees, members, congregants, and volunteers—more than 150 million Americans. The Coalition is committed to advancing—through research and analysis, education, outreach, and informed advocacy—an affordable, high-value health care system for patients and consumers, payers, employers and taxpayers.

In a letter dated January 5th, 2017, Governor Brian Sandoval (R-NV) urged leaders of the House of Representatives to “ensure that individuals, families, children, aged, blind, disabled and mentally ill are not suddenly left without access to the care they need to lead happy productive lives.” We agree.

To date, thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have opted to expand Medicaid eligibility to more than 11 million Americans, making health care accessible to many who previously lacked affordable coverage options. Putting at risk these states’ achievements or restricting the remaining nineteen states’ flexibility to expand Medicaid would undercut state-level efforts to reform health care and protect the most vulnerable. This alone is sufficient reason to preserve the state option to expand Medicaid eligibility and the enhanced federal financial support which makes that option viable.

However, NCHC is also gravely concerned that repeal or defunding of Medicaid expansion would roll back the bipartisan achievements of the 114th Congress.

  1. To support physicians and other clinicians who embrace new high-value models of care, the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) took crucial steps to support alignment of payment policies across all payers – including Medicaid. Grappling with a rollback of Medicaid eligibility would consume the attention of state officials and the health care providers who serve Medicaid beneficiaries. This would effectively sideline the nation’s second-largest payer and many of the providers which rely on it- just as MACRA’s historic value-based payment reforms are getting off the ground.
  2. MACRA also reaffirmed the bipartisan consensus that has sustained two crucial parts of our safety net: community health centers and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Unfortunately, disrupting Medicaid expansion coverage will have disastrous consequences for FQHCs, which rely on Medicaid for 44% of their revenue. Additionally, he added strain on state budgets occasioned by repeal or defunding of Medicaid expansion could limit states’ investments in children’s coverage, including CHIP.
  3. Just last year, to improve and expand treatment for mental illness and substance abuse, Congress passed two landmark pieces of legislation, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act and the mental health provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act. Eliminating the Medicaid expansion coverage which makes treatment possible for adults earning at or below 138% of the federal poverty level would move federal policy in the opposite direction.

NCHC is committed to fixing what is broken in our health system. However, repealing or defunding the state option to expand Medicaid would put at risk recent state health reform initiatives, impair health care access for vulnerable populations and detract from recent, bipartisan federal legislative achievements. We call upon you to reject any repeal or defunding of the state option to expand Medicaid eligibility.

In the weeks and months ahead, we look forward to discussing this issue further and sharing our perspective on health policy issues not addressed in this letter. If you have questions about this or related issues, please contact me directly at jrother@nchc.org or 202-638-7151.

Yours truly,

John Rother
President and CEO

Filed Under: 2017, Policy Correspondence, Preserving and Improving Medicaid and CHIP

Mission

To bring together key stakeholders in order to achieve an affordable, high-value health care system for patients and consumers, for employers and other payers, and for taxpayers.

Signup for NCHC Newsletter

NCHC Recent Policy Correspondence

  • NCHC STATEMENT ON BICAMERAL AND BIPARTISAN SURPRISE BILLING LEGISLATION, “NO SURPRISES ACT,”
  • NCHC STATEMENT ON PART D REBATE SAFE HARBOR REPEAL AND “MOST FAVORED NATION” DEMONSTRATION
  • NCHC Statement On The Trump Administration’s “Most-Favored-Nation” Drug Pricing Executive Order
  • NCHC Statement on the Trump Administration’s Executive Orders
  • NCHC Statement on the Pricing of Remdesivir
...More Policy Correspondence

National Coalition on Health Care

About Us

The National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC) was formed more than two decades ago to help achieve comprehensive health system change and is currently led by John Rother. We aim to be a leader in promoting a healthy population and a more effective, efficient and responsive health system that provides quality care for all. NCHC is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization of organizations. Our growing Coalition represents more than 80 participating organizations, including medical societies, businesses, unions, health care providers, faith-based associations, pension and health funds, insurers, and groups representing consumers, patients, women, … Read More...

PRESIDENT

John Rother

Interim CEO

Shawn Martin

CHAIRMAN

Jack Lewin
Principal and Founder
Lewin and Associates, LLC

MISSION

To bring together key stakeholders in order to achieve an affordable, high-value health care system for patients and consumers, for employers and other payers, and for taxpayers.

CONTACT US

900 16th Street NW, Suite 400
Washington, DC 20006
contactus@nchc.org

Connect With NCHC

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent News & Posts

  • NCHC Letter to President-Elect Biden’s Transition Team
  • NCHC STATEMENT ON BICAMERAL AND BIPARTISAN SURPRISE BILLING LEGISLATION, “NO SURPRISES ACT,”
  • The Impact of COVID-19 on Communities of Color
  • NCHC Statement On CMS’ “Geographic Direct Contracting” Model
  • NCHC STATEMENT ON PART D REBATE SAFE HARBOR REPEAL AND “MOST FAVORED NATION” DEMONSTRATION

Recent Tweets

Tweets by NC_HC

Copyright © 2021 · Outreach Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in