The Benson Administration's plan to retool the state's Medicaid program has generated plenty of controversy. At a public hearing yesterday, people ranging from heath care providers, to Medicaid recipients and policy analysts again questioned the proposal.
"There's a credibility problem here."
That's Pete Eldridge of the group Concerned parents and Advocates….The longtime-medicaid watcher says he places little stock in the word of the state's top officials.
"The Commissioner and the Governor constantly said we were spreading misinformation that there was no secret plan. All the while it's sitting there in Washington. When we’ve been lied to like that it makes you wonder what are they saying now."
What heath and human service commissioner John Sttephen is saying now -- as opposed to earlier this year -- is that overhauling medicaid bears no relation to the state's loss of 100 million dollar loss in federal funding.
"The bottom line is this is not about the revenue this is about changing the Medicaid program to make it more consumer oriented and consumer directed that's what this is about."
Among other things, Stephen's proposal would expand home and community care for the elderly, and create capped create heath savings accounts for some Medicaid recipients….The plan would also replace the state children's heath insurance program, known as heathy kids……The hope is that those and other changes can help slow the state's ballooning Medicaid outlay……But skeptics worry that a lack of data make a reasonable decision impossible.
"This is the first time we've actually has to fine a right to know request."
Doug Hall is of the NH center for public policy studies….Since 1996, he's authored many reports on state budget matters. Hall believes the heath and human services has provided lawmakers with flawed information about it's proposal……He without data knowbody can make an informed decision.
"They are proposing something they say is going to save 200 million dollars plus, and yet they haven't provided the information so we can see how they calculated that. And until they provide that in considerable detail we can't comment positively or negatively on their plan."
Heath and Human services will hold further hearing on the GraniteCare plan over the next two days in Berlin and Nashua.
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