CMS Gives Arkansas, Iowa More Leeway in Medicaid Expansion Waivers

The Obama administration is continuing to compromise with Republican-led states that expand Medicaid. Not only is CMS allowing Arkansas to impose cost-sharing for beneficiaries below poverty level, but Iowa has also been given permission to not offer nonemergency transportation to beneficiaries.

Patient advocates and some policy experts have criticized the cost-sharing provisions that are becoming increasingly popular in Medicaid waiver applications because previous experiments with such fees suggest fees of any size generally discourage low-income people from enrolling.

Read the story at Modern Healthcare: http://bit.ly/1BuRLz7