Committee To Hear Medicaid Waiver Proposals

A legislative interim committee will meet next week to hear information about a Medicaid waiver proposal for behavioral health services and two other waiver requests to end 12-month continuous eligibility for certain Medicaid recipients.

Medicaid waivers allow states to operate their Medicaid programs in ways not otherwise allowed under federal law.

The Children, Families, Health, and Human Services Interim Committee will meet by videoconference at 8 a.m. on Aug. 10 to hear presentations on the waiver proposals, as required by law.

The Department of Public Health and Human Services will provide overviews of:

• the draft application for the Healing and Ending Addiction through Recovery and Treatment (HEART) waiver for behavioral health services; and

• proposals to eliminate 12-month continuous eligibility from two existing waivers that cover the Medicaid expansion population, low-income parents, and adults with serious disabling mental illness.

Also at the meeting, the committee will review a revised work plan for the interim and decide whether to continue its objections to two proposed administrative rules involving provider reimbursement rates.

The committee will take public comment on all agenda items, as well as on any non-agenda items within its jurisdiction. People wishing to offer comment during the meeting must sign up by 5 p.m. on Aug. 9. People also may submit comments in writing before Aug. 10.

A preliminary agenda and meeting materials are available online, along with links to sign up for offering public comment during the meeting, to submit public comment in writing, and to watch the meeting without providing comments.