Politics
Sick Call
Medicaid prescription starts with tougher enforcement
Around the State
Gobbling up nearly a third of the state's revenues, the medical program for the indigent and disabled is projected to cost Floridians $19 billion this year -- a billion more than last year.
What's worse, patients are unhappy about the level of care they receive, and some providers flat-out refuse to serve them.
"We have 2.7 million people on Medicaid, and they wear it like a stigma around their necks," says state Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart.
Lawmakers, health-care professionals and even law-enforcement agencies know there's a problem. But, so far, the only "solutions" seem to involve cutting reimbursement rates or further curtailing service.
"Medicaid paralyzes the budget," said Senate President-designate, Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island. "I intend to put the bulk of my attention toward this."
"This requires more than a nip-and-tuck budget. We need fundamental change," notes Sen. Don Gaetz, chairman of the Health Care Committee.
Gaetz, who formerly worked in the health-care field, knows whereof he speaks. The Niceville Republican notes, for example, that Medicaid's failure to fund primary preventative dental care for children simply leads to bigger costs down the road.
But, kicking the can down the road is exactly what Florida and the federal government have been doing for decades.
Gov. Charlie Crist's budget provides $2.7 billion in additional funding to cover costs associated with increased enrollment and utilization of medical services for low-income families with children, as well as elderly and disabled individuals.
Interested parties, both in and out of government, say the cash-strapped state cannot afford these additional outlays. They want to do more than continue to throw money at a hemorrhaging system.
Comments (1)
We should start by ending subsidies to corn and sugar- two big factors in chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes.To continue to subsidize corn and sugar and then turn around and subsidize the ill health and bad teeth caused by a diet too heavy in sweeteners/calories is just stupidity.
We should implement a traffic light symbol on the front packages of processed foods so people can tell at a glance whether it has too much salt, sugar, or unhealthy fats for their particular condition. Red- stop and think before eating this food, yellow- eat with caution, or green- eat to your heart's content.
Zero tolerance on pollution and toxins in our food, body care products, and household furnishings. Do not kid yourself that pollution and toxins are not implicit in cancer, as well as autism and other brain disorders. It's already been established that air pollution leads to heart disease and asthma. And we'll soon find pollution is also implicit in higher infertility rates, miscarraiges, premature births, as well as gender issues and birth defects, etc. (A premature birth can cost upwards of $100,000. Lack of regular health care pre-pregnancy is also is implicit in premature births.)
Of course, prevention should also include encouragement to doctors to "prescribe" diet and a change in lifestyle as a first course (unless the person is imminently in danger).
Back to specifically Medicaid in Florida, taxpayers are already paying for a school nurse and an office. Why not require that position be filled by a nurse practioner or a publicly funded MD and have them serve children on Medicaid- and refer them out only if necessary?
Why not the state providing large scale employers of minimum wage or low paying jobs the same thing?
How about property tax abatements for doctors offices that serve a certain number of Medicaid patients (or all of them)?.
And of course we should not overlook the importance of education. Basic as well as a sex education based on facts and which includes the benefits of waiting to have children until you and the other parent are ready to take on the responsibility. Etc.