What Initiatives Are States Considering To Control Prescription Drug Costs in Medicaid?
Rising Medicaid spending on prescription drugs has prompted many states to look for new ways to control such costs.
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Rising Medicaid spending on prescription drugs has prompted many states to look for new ways to control such costs.
On January 12, 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved a Section 1115 demonstration waiver in Kentucky, entitled “Kentucky Helping to Engage and Achieve Long Term Health” or KY HEALTH. On the same day that CMS approved Kentucky’s waiver, Governor Bevin issued an executive order directing the state to terminate the Medicaid expansion if a court decides that one or more of the waiver provisions are illegal and cannot be implemented. This fact sheet summarizes key provisions of Kentucky’s approved waiver.
This brief presents perspectives of enrollees and safety net providers about Arkansas' new Section 1115 Medicaid waiver work and reporting requirements based on focus groups and interviews. The discussions examine enrollees’ awareness of the new requirements and ability to set up online accounts for monthly reporting; the effect of the new requirements on enrollees’ work and common barriers to work; enrollees’ experience with monthly reporting; impacts on particular populations, such as those with disabilities or who are homeless; and the anticipated effects of coverage losses resulting from the new requirements.
Arkansas is one of seven states for which CMS has approved a Section 1115 waiver to condition Medicaid eligibility on meeting work and reporting requirements and the first state to implement this type of waiver. The new requirements were phased in for most enrollees ages 30-49 beginning in June 2018, and for individuals ages 19-29 starting in January 2019. Unless exempt, enrollees must engage in 80 hours of work or other qualifying activities each month and must report their work or exemption status by the 5th of the following month using an online portal; as of mid-December 2018, they also may report by phone. Monthly data related to the new requirements released by the Arkansas Department of Human Services show that over 18,000 people were disenrolled from Medicaid for failure to comply with the new requirements in 2018. Those who fail to comply with the requirements for any three months in 2019 can lose coverage beginning in April 2019. This brief looks at data for January 2019. Separate reports look at early implementation of the new requirements and enrollee experiences.
This policy brief provides an overview of recent Section 1115 waivers and a discussion of key issues. The HIFA initiative, combined with state fiscal pressures, have led to an increase in the number of states seeking Section 1115 waivers. Many of these recent waivers stake out new ground in terms of the scope of changes in coverage that they permit.
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured has been monitoring the development of the Pharmacy Plus waiver initiated by the Bush Administration in 2002 and tracking the states that have pending or approved plans.
The brief provides an overview of the Cook County, Illinois “CountyCare” early expansion waiver experience, which may help inform continued efforts as the Medicaid expansion is implemented across states. It finds that, in just over 12 months, more than 82,000 Cook County residents successfully enrolled in CountyCare coverage, allowing the state and county to get a significant jump start on the Medicaid expansion. Illinois implemented the full Medicaid expansion in January 2014 and automatically transitioned CountyCare enrollees to the expansion. As of March 2014, CountyCare members account for nearly half of the total statewide enrollment of adults into the Medicaid expansion.
This page tracks recent state actions to extend Medicaid postpartum coverage, including approved and pending 1115 waivers, legislation that will require the state to seek federal approval through a SPA or 1115 waiver, submitted and approved SPAs, and coverage financed solely with state funds.
Contingency management is an evidence-based psychosocial intervention that uses motivational incentives, such as vouchers or gift cards, to encourage recovery behaviors like stimulant abstinence and treatment session (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy, group therapy) attendance. The Biden administration has approved five state contingency management waivers (California, Delaware, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington); two additional state contingency management requests are currently pending federal review.
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