Minnesota has been waiting for months to see if Congress will act to extend the enhanced Medicaid matching rate (frequently referred to as the FMAP extension). At issue is an anticipated increase in federal dollars for Medicaid, health care for low-income people whose costs are shared between federal and state governments (it’s known as Medical Assistance in Minnesota). The federal government’s initial recovery act provided the states with additional federal health care funding – Minnesota received $1.8 billion – so that people would not lose their health care during these tough economic times. This additional health care funding ends December 31, 2010. The question is whether Congress will provide another six months of additional federal health care dollars, about $408 million for Minnesota.
With Minnesota’s legislative session ending next Monday, the legislature passed a bill early this week to solve the state’s budget deficit without the FMAP extension. However, the bill included contingency language. If the federal dollars are approved by June 15th, the funds would be used to reverse cuts to child protection services, homeless shelters, developmental disability services, chemical dependency grants and a range of health care providers. In addition, the resources would increase access to health care by reversing tighter asset limits and restoring an outreach program that helps people enroll in public programs. The extension of FMAP would also force Minnesota to delay the implementation of some cuts in health care eligibility in order to be eligible for the federal dollars.
Whatever the fate of this particular bill (which was vetoed by the Governor on Tuesday), policymakers will be looking to implement reductions to vital services for struggling Minnesotans. The federal dollars are an important resource that would help Minnesota’s economy in more than one way. The additional funding would minimize the cuts in services for families who are still a very long way from recovering from the recession. On top of that, the federal money would also save jobs in Minnesota that would be eliminated when state funding is cut.
Right now, it looks like the U.S. House of Representatives may take a vote on extended FMAP as early as next week.
-Christina Wessel
