Health Care Reform Update

Billions are still at stake, but now there’s a little room to breathe. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted a 15-month extension for Texas’ 1115 Medicaid Waiver program while the details of a possible longer-term agreement are worked out. The waiver was set to expire on Sept. 30. The extension keeps billions of dollars flowing to the state that can be used for indigent care and expanded access to care for the poor through the end of 2017. Current funding formulas and levels will be left in place while the state analyzes the waiver’s Uncompensated Care pool and the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program.