by Jonathan Ingram As the Institute reported last week, Republican members of the Illinois House of Representatives filed a resolution urging the federal government to give the state greater flexibility in administering its Medicaid program. That resolution was still stuck in committee on Wednesday, when Represenative Patti Bellock, R-Hinsdale, motioned the full House to bring the resolution...
The problem Earlier this year, Illinois lawmakers purportedly passed a budget that reduced overall state spending. As part of this supposed budget reform, the state’s runaway Medicaid budget was to be brought under control. A review of the fiscal year 2012 budget will show that the money appropriated to the Medicaid program for fiscal year...
by Jonathan Ingram Earlier today, Republican members of the Illinois House of Representatives filed a resolution in the General Assembly urging the federal Super Committee to recommend granting the state greater flexibility in administering its Medicaid program. In particular, they ask that the Super Committee and Congress repeal the “maintenance of effort” requirements in ObamaCare. As you...
by Jonathan Ingram A year and a half ago, Nancy Pelosi told the public that Congress had to pass ObamaCare so they could find out what was in it. Well, Americans aren’t pleased with the result. New polling data from the Kaiser Family Foundation shows that support for ObamaCare is at all-time low. Only 18 percent of Americans think that they...
by Jonathan Ingram As we reported yesterday, ObamaCare is going to bust Illinois’ budget and hurt the most vulnerable among us. But did you know it’s also going to drastically raise the costs of hiring new workers? ObamaCare requires most employer-sponsored insurance coverage to provide a minimum level of benefits, which ultimately drives the cost of labor...
The Problem The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly known as ObamaCare, will have a profound impact on Illinois’ Medicaid patients. It will make the program more expensive and worsen care for those who need it most by adding more people to a failing program. ObamaCare expands Medicaid in two major ways: First, it...
The Problem The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly known as ObamaCare, will have a profound impact on Illinois’ Medicaid patients. It will make the program more expensive and worsen care for those who need it most by adding more people to a failing program. ObamaCare expands Medicaid in two major ways: First, it...
Download this Policy Chart report here. See the full report for this Policy chart here. The federal health care changes hinge on expanding Medicaid eligibility to cover more Americans. While proponents of this supposed reform say more people will have access to care, the reality is that flooding an already-stressed Medicaid system with new enrollees...
by Jonathan Ingram Do you think Obamacare should be repealed? If you do, you’re not alone. Public opposition to Obamacare remains as high as ever. According to the most recent survey by Rasmussen Reports, 57 percent of likely voters favor repealing the law. What’s more, 54 percent believe repeal is likely, which is the highest level of...
by Jonathan Ingram Illinois cannot afford Obamacare. The Medicaid expansion in Obamacare is expected to increase Illinois’s Medicaid spending to $10.2 billion by 2030. This represents a 77 percent increase over 2008 spending. Illinois already faces a spending crisis, particularly within Medicaid, and the Comptroller reports even longer delays for payments to doctors and hospitals treating Medicaid patients are...
by Amanda Griffin-Johnson As part of ObamaCare, states have the option to establish a health insurance exchange, intended to be a centralized marketplace for insurance. These exchanges must conform to federal guidelines, and if the state does not “demonstrate progress toward implementing an Exchange” by January 1, 2013, the federal government will be responsible for setting...
Guest blogger, Dr. Mark Neerhof, examines the need for meaningful tort reform in Illinois.
This week, Pres. Obama put his support behind a bill that will purportedly give states flexibility by allowing them to "opt-out" of certain ObamaCare provisions. But does it really provide the solution states are looking for?
HB1569 would modify the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971 to create an optional alternative health insurance program for state employees, a combination of a Health Savings Account and a qualifying, state-sponsored, High-Deductible Health Plan.