Illinois Proposes Medicaid Equality

Whenever I see emotionally fueled opposition without providing constructive solutions, I question the source of the voice.


Disability advocates are suppose to advocate, chanting their battle cry of equal access.  HMO management would make the disabled Medicaid-equal to the rest of the recipients. These advocates would only need to mandate the HMO provides for community programming and services.


Community based organizations are traditionally non-profits, meaning they are not subject to public disclosure or external audits. HMOs are.


HMOs need to be held accountable to the populations they serve and start providing community based services to traditionally Medicaid-neglected populations and communities.


Disability advocates need to start participating in the discussions to end Medicaid fraud , waste and abuse because it is normally done to their constituency, in their programs. 


The public wants equal access to accountability and transparency.

Quinn unveils proposal for reforming Medicaid

Republican State Senate candidate Jack Quinn unveiled Sunday a reform plan for Medicaid, the state-federal program for health care to the poor and long-term care to the elderly and disabled.

Key elements of his proposal include transferring control of provider reimbursement rates from the State Legislature to the state Health Department, providing multiple Medicaid packages and giving counties more control over what optional benefits are offered, allowing private insurers to offer services to Medicaid enrollees and replacing fee-for-service payments in favor of a system in which enrollees receive annual Medicaid contributions to pay for medical needs.

Quinn’s plan also calls for doing more to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse, but he noted that even the most optimistic waste recovery estimates amount to a tiny portion of Medicaid’s cost.

“Like much of New York’s finances, Medicaid involves some very hard choices. Decades of wishful thinking have wrecked the state’s fiscal standing and any honest reformer must come to the conclusion that overall funding must be reduced along with optional benefits; any other course is irresponsible,” said Quinn.