States Brace for Medicaid Cuts

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration injected billions of dollars into Medicaid, the nation’s low-income health program, as the recession deepened two years ago. The money runs out at the end of this month, and benefits are being cut for millions of people, even though unemployment has increased.
From New Jersey to California, state officials are bracing for the end to more than $90 billion in federal largess specifically designated for Medicaid. To hold down costs, states are cutting Medicaid payments to doctors and hospitals, limiting benefits for Medicaid recipients, reducing the scope of covered services, requiring beneficiaries to pay larger co-payments and expanding the use of managed care.

Opinion: Don't Close Doors to Employment

Came across a guest column in The Seattle Times by Karen Williams, a board member for the Washington State Initiative for Supported Employment, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding employment opportunities for people with developmental disabilities. Unfortunately, it could be written for virtually any state. Government needs to hear everyone's story about how budget cuts will result in the loss of critical services for individuals with disabilities. It's not too late to speak up!

SEATTLE -- A crisis, goes the widely used political adage, is a terrible thing to waste. But a crisis can also result in drastic decisions and ill-considered reversals in public policy.
This is part of state budget deliberations, in which the House has proposed a $54 million cut from employment programs for people with developmental disabilities. That amounts to a 40 percent reduction in current programs, which isn't even the worst of it.