State News

Aligning Systems for Health: Health Care + Public Health + Social Services, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and managed by the Georgia Health Policy Center (GHPC) shine a spotlight on the Western Idaho Community Health Collaborative (WICHC), a 10-county collaborative and align each other’s strategies and investments in a coordinated effort. In recognition of Idaho’s high poverty rate and the struggling middle class, the WICHC is focused on initiatives that target that population “most at risk of falling off the cliff,” says a health strategist with the collaborative. WICHC used the Results-Based Accountability process to hone in on specific shared indicators within this population — health care, transportation, food insecurity, housing, wages, and trauma — that will guide the collaborative’s work. WICHC has convened a data work group, and while working toward the macro goal of sharing data, partners shared needed data to complete the Results-Based Accountability process.

Through a unique partnership between Iowa Medicaid and public health agencies, Iowa’s I-Smile program addresses the disproportionate impact of dental disease on low-income individuals, reports the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). I-Smile, and its related I-Smile @ School for children and I-Smile Silver for adults, help promote preventive oral health services and reduce barriers to dental care across the state. I-Smile primarily targets the 47 percent of Iowa children ages 0-12 who are enrolled in Medicaid to provide dental care and disease detection early in life and limit costly, preventable dental procedures. Additionally, given the link between mothers’ oral health and their infants’, I-Smile also serves pregnant women.

A COVID-19 patient from rural Kansas received an $80,000 medical bill after his insurance company declined to pay for the air ambulance needed for him to receive treatment, reports KCUR. While the insurer eventually covered the bill, the situation shed light on widespread confusion over patient protections in light of COVID-19. The current patchwork of federal laws, state laws and company policies mean patients may well be shielded from COVID-related medical bills, but they will likely have to figure out which protections apply to them and push to assert their rights.

Tennessee was one of 21 states to temporarily suspend scope-of-practice requirements in an effort to expand access to care during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. The order, which lapsed on May 18, cleared the way for nurse practitioners to write prescriptions without consulting a physician, waived a requirement for chart review and waived a requirement that a supervising physician visit remote sites every 30 days, among other things. Nursing groups have pushed the governor to extend the executive order.  

Maine’s Medicaid program, MaineCare, created a webpage that describes how its beneficiaries can access remote healthcare services. The website explains what types of services are available via telehealth, how to access telehealth and other remote care safely, as well as additional resources on telehealth and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Nevada Legislature approved immense cuts to the state’s health and education budgets on July 19^th in an effort to rebalance the state budget amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and plummeting revenue projections, reports the Associated Press. The revised budget passed through both the state Senate and Assembly after days and nights of deliberation in the part-time Legislature, which the Nevada governor convened for an unscheduled special legislative session on July 8 to address a projected $1.2 billion revenue shortfall. The plan cuts more than $500 million from the state budget, with the largest reductions hitting the Department of Health and Human Services and the K-12 education system, including cuts to Medicaid reimbursement rates and specialty care programs and funding allocated to the state’s most underperforming schools. The Nevada governor said in a statement he intends to sign the bill.

Following a handful of other states, New Hampshire has passed a law to set up prescription drug importation programs with Canada, reports Healio News. The omnibus bill also puts a $30 price cap on monthly insulin copays for those with state-regulated commercial health insurance. Proponents of the measure believe it will create transparency in drug pricing and help New Hampshire residents get access to lower-cost prescription drugs, namely insulin.

A new Georgia law protects patients from surprise medical bills in an emergency or when they receive care at an in-network healthcare facility but are treated by an out-of-network provider (such as an anesthesiologist), according to Community Catalyst. Patients will pay no more than they would have if the care had been received in-network, and providers cannot bill a patient for any additional amount, Arnold Ventures reports. However, Georgia’s bill extends only to state-regulated health insurance plans and certain public plans (such as the state employee health plan). 

Amid a spike in coronavirus cases across Oklahoma, COVID-19 data from Tulsa County suggests that people of color, particularly Asian and Latinx people, are being disproportionately harmed by the virus, according to The Black Wall Street Times. Despite national data indicating that non-Hispanic Black and Indigenous Americans are 5 times more likely to be hospitalized due to COVID-19 than non-Hispanic White Americans, local data shows that Black and Indigenous people in Tulsa County have disproportionately low rates of COVID-19 infection. A potential explanation for the discrepancy could be increased access to testing and treatment for COVID-19 for some racial and ethnic groups over others.