Medicaid Study Committee Holds Final Hearing
Georgia lawmakers Monday held the last of a series of hearings on how to control rising costs related to the state Medicaid program.
In a packed committee room near the state Capitol, several speakers representing hospitals and other provider groups stressed the implications of the health reform law.
Maggie Gil, who heads Memorial Health University Hospital in Savannah, said she’s worried about the state’s decision to reject billions in federal Medicaid funds under the law. She said the move, coupled with federal cutbacks for treating the uninsured, has put her hospital and others on high alert.
“It will have an incredibly detrimental impact on the backbone of healthcare in Georgia,” said Gil.
State Medicaid spending has risen steadily over the years and is projected to increase from $2.8 billion this year to $3.9 billion by 2020, even without expanding Medicaid under the health reform law.
It’s why State Rep. Butch Parrish (R-Swainsboro), who co-chairs the study committee, says the state is considering any and all ideas.
“I think the state is interested and the governor is still open to looking and listening and if there’s a way to provide healthcare to those who don’t have it in this state and we can do it in a manner that we can afford it, I think we’d all be for that,” said Parrish.
The study committee will issue a final report on its findings at the end of the year. For more information on the hearings, click here.
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