HR0593 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0593 LRB097 14449 KTG 59298 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, On August 2, 2011, the Budget Control Act of 2011 was signed into law creating the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, a bipartisan Congressional committee given the task of identifying an additional $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction measures; and

WHEREAS, The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, also known as the Super Committee, is comprised of 12 lawmakers, appointed equally by Democratic and Republican leaders in the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate; and

WHEREAS, The Super Committee shall vote by November 23, 2011 on its debt reduction proposals and if a majority of the Super Committee reaches an agreement on all or part of a deficit reduction plan, then the proposal shall receive an up or down vote by the House and Senate by December 23, 2011; and

WHEREAS, Changes to the Medicaid program are being considered as a component of securing a portion of the $1.5 trillion in savings to be reported by the Super Committee; and

WHEREAS, President Obama has forwarded recommendations to the Super Committee for $72 billion in federal Medicaid reductions, including limits on the use of provider assessment programs, changes to federal matching rate formulas, and restrictions on the use of Disproportionate Share Hospital payments; and

WHEREAS, While changes to the Medicaid program are a vital component for deficit reduction, such reforms should go beyond proposals seeking to limit the federal share of expenditures and must focus on the underlying factors that have led to unsustainable growth in the Medicaid program; and

WHEREAS, Medicaid Maintenance of Effort (MOE) provisions contained in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) require states to maintain eligibility standards, methodologies, and procedures that were in place on the date of the enactment of the ACA, and these MOE requirements seriously impair the ability of states in fiscal crises to administer viable Medicaid programs; and

WHEREAS, In an attempt to control escalating Medicaid costs and improve coordination of care for enrollees, Illinois enacted comprehensive Medicaid reforms in 2011, including changes to require applicants to submit one month of income data and proof of Illinois residency when applying for Medicaid coverage; and

WHEREAS, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) submitted written correspondence to the Director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services blocking implementation of these two common sense, bipartisan reforms as a violation of the MOE provisions contained in the ACA; and

WHEREAS, The rejection of these reforms, which are already in place in numerous states, hamper Illinois' ability to verify which applicants and enrollees are truly eligible for Medicaid services, thereby increasing Medicaid costs for both the State and federal government; and

WHEREAS, Relaxation of the MOE requirements in the ACA would provide states the flexibility to administer Medicaid programs based on factors currently present in each individual state and would end the practice of penalizing states that have proactively implemented comprehensive coverage provisions during more stable economic times; and

WHEREAS, Illinois' economy continues to struggle while the Medicaid program consumes an ever growing percentage of available revenues, estimated to result in a $2.4 billion end-of-year backlog of Medicaid bills for Fiscal Year 2012; and

WHEREAS, Allowing additional flexibility in developing Medicaid guidelines for eligibility, methodologies, and procedures will help Illinois to implement program efficiencies to reduce payment backlogs, reduce hardships to medical providers who are waiting for payments, and safeguard care for those verifiably eligible for services; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to recommend repealing the Medicaid Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirements in the Affordable Care Act which have been cited by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in blocking bipartisan, common sense Medicaid reforms; and be it further

RESOLVED, That that we urge the Congress of the United States to vote to repeal the Medicaid Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirements to allow states to have the flexibility to administer Medicaid programs based on current circumstances in each state with the goal of providing access to care to those truly in need and eligible for assistance; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the 12 members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, members of the Illinois Congressional delegation, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, and the President of the United States.