State Health Updates
- California – Governor Gavin Newsom and the Department of Health Care Services announced that roughly 286,000 older adult Californians are receiving full scope Medi-Cal as a result of the expansion of comprehensive preventive care and other services to all income-eligible adults 50 years of age and older, regardless of immigration status.
- Illinois – The Pritzker administration announced an expansive Illinois Safe Sleep Support program. The program, led by 12 government and community agencies, aims to address sudden unexpected infant death (SUID), one of the leading causes of infant mortality. The program will focus on outreach and education to expand community-based promotion of safe sleep practices, promote resources to improve safe sleep environments, identify SUID disparities, and address opportunities for improvement.
- Maine – In September, Maine announced that the weighted average health insurance premiums for small businesses will fall by 0.8% from 2022 to 2023. A recent Health Affairs Forefront article by Commissioner Jeanne Lambrew of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services describes how Maine was able to achieve this decrease, the first such reduction in average small group health insurance premiums in Maine since at least 2001.
- Nevada – The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services submitted a request for a new five-year section 1115 demonstration intended to expand statewide access to oral health services for diabetic Nevadans over the age of 21, by utilizing the comprehensive diabetes treatment and management models of federally qualified health centers.
- New Jersey – Governor Phil Murphy and Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced that a combined $20 million in state and federal grants would be made available through the Community-Based Violence Intervention Program and Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program to work with victims in the wake of violent incidents and with individuals and communities impacted by gun violence.
- New York – NY State of Health, the state’s official health plan marketplace, announced its continued partnership with Rite Aid to help New Yorkers find a health plan that fits their needs and budget. Certified enrollment assisters will be available at Rite Aid locations across the state to provide information about affordable coverage, answer questions and make enrollment appointments.
- Tennessee – Tennessee submitted an amendment to the TennCare III demonstration proposing to continue to provide the enhanced home and community-based services (HCBS) supports currently approved under emergency authority in response to the COVID-19 PHE, beyond the expiration of the PHE. This amendment will allow Tennessee to continue providing an enhanced array of HCBS supports for individuals with disabilities on an ongoing basis.
- Wisconsin – The Wisconsin Department of Health Services received CMS approval to provide housing supports for low-income Wisconsin families in need. Those who are eligible include families with children 18 and younger and individuals who are pregnant who have low income (below 200% of the federal poverty level) and do not have housing. Wisconsin is the first state to implement this type of housing benefit through a Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Health Services Initiative (HSI). The HSI option allows states to use a portion of CHIP funding to implement initiatives that improve the health of children.
- Georgia and Pennsylvania – CMS approved both states’ extension of Medicaid and CHIP coverage for 12 months after pregnancy under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act. As a result, up to an additional 57,000 people in Georgia and Pennsylvania will now be eligible for Medicaid or CHIP for a full year after pregnancy. In total, an estimated 418,000 Americans across 26 states and the District of Columbia now have expanded access to postpartum coverage as a result of ARP.