ccording to a new Government Accountability Office report  the economic stimulus package Congress would boost each state’s federal medical assistance percentage  by 7.6% from the first quarter of fiscal year 2009 through the end of the first quarter of fiscal year 2011.

The Medicaid funding would total nearly $87 billion over the period, the report said. State allocations would range from less than $100 million to more than $12 billion.Besides raising each state’s FMAP, the bill would provide additional FMAP assistance based on increased unemployment. It would create three tiers based on state unemployment rates, each of which would correspond to an additional FMAP increase.

To see the report, go to http://www.gao.gov

According to a new U.S. Census Bureau report, Nursing homes and residential care facilities continued to receive most of their funding from Medicaid in 2007. The entitlement program handed out $59 billion to them.

Medicaid provided at least $20 billion to continuing care retirement communities in 2007, which was up 10.1% from 2006. Homes for the elderly that do not have on-site nursing care facilities also saw a revenue increase of 7.1% up to $14.5 billion, according to the Census Bureau figures. Overall healthcare and social assistance revenue increased by 6.8% to $1.66 trillion in 2007.

While overall revenues were up, emergency relief services saw a 13.2% cut, dropping the amount of funding received to $6.9 billion. Figures were compiled from the results of the 2007 Service Annual Survey: Health Care and Social Assistance, which estimates revenues for healthcare providers and related businesses with paid employees.

Source: US Census Report

Many consumers are ill-informed about Medicare and Medicaid’s role in long-term care, and greater planning could help reduce the danger of soaring Medicaid costs, according to a new report from America’s Health Insurance Plans.

Over the next 20 years, federal and state governments are expected to spend $3.7 trillion on long-term care expenses, the report said. Between 2008 and 2027, annual Medicaid long-term care expenditures are projected to grow by 124% from $51.5 billion to $115.6 billion. AHIP represents most of the nation’s commercial insurers. Researchers at Strategic Affairs Forecasting and Paul A. London Associates conducted the report.

Too many people believe that Medicare will help pay for long-term care expenses, when actually it will provide only a limited amount of rehabilitative care, according to report authors. Up to two-thirds underestimate their potential need for long-term care, they note.

Medicaid is known as the government health-care program for the poor, but it pays for more than two-thirds of long-term nursing-home stays. That means many middle-income Americans with savings will need the program. Ultimately, medicaid will cover nursing-home care for nearly everyone who needs it but can’t afford to pay on their own.

All Medicaid beneficiaries fit into one of several qualifying categories  of the program - 65 years of age or older, blind or disabled, for example. You must also submit financials that take into account both your income , assets as well as those of your spouse if you are married. The final category is  the people eligible to receive Supplemental Security Income from the Social Security Administration.

Health insurer WellPoint Inc. announced Monday May 5, 2008 that its National Government Services subsidiary was selected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to administer the Medicare Administrative Contract for an area that includes New York and Connecticut.

Under the new contract, the WellPoint unit will perform key administrative functions for Medicare’s contracts with hospitals, skilled nursing complexes and physicians. They will manage all appeals, audit and reimbursement, claims processing, medical review and coverage determinations.

Mercury News.com reported today that a coalition of health care groups have filed a lawsuit against the state of California to prevent 10 percent cuts to Medi-Cal and Denti-Cal payments scheduled to begin July 1, 2008. There are more than 6 million low-income Californians that use Medi-Cal for health care services. The class-action lawsuit has been filed in The Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of California health care providers. The complaint includes the California Medical Association, the California Hospital Association and the California Dental Association.