Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0593
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Full Text of HR0593  97th General Assembly

HR0593 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY


  

 


 
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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, On August 2, 2011, the Budget Control Act of 2011
3was signed into law creating the Joint Select Committee on
4Deficit Reduction, a bipartisan Congressional committee given
5the task of identifying an additional $1.5 trillion in deficit
6reduction measures; and
 
7    WHEREAS, The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction,
8also known as the Super Committee, is comprised of 12
9lawmakers, appointed equally by Democratic and Republican
10leaders in the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate; and
 
11    WHEREAS, The Super Committee shall vote by November 23,
122011 on its debt reduction proposals and if a majority of the
13Super Committee reaches an agreement on all or part of a
14deficit reduction plan, then the proposal shall receive an up
15or down vote by the House and Senate by December 23, 2011; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Changes to the Medicaid program are being
17considered as a component of securing a portion of the $1.5
18trillion in savings to be reported by the Super Committee; and
 
19    WHEREAS, President Obama has forwarded recommendations to
20the Super Committee for $72 billion in federal Medicaid
21reductions, including limits on the use of provider assessment

 

 

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1programs, changes to federal matching rate formulas, and
2restrictions on the use of Disproportionate Share Hospital
3payments; and
 
4    WHEREAS, While changes to the Medicaid program are a vital
5component for deficit reduction, such reforms should go beyond
6proposals seeking to limit the federal share of expenditures
7and must focus on the underlying factors that have led to
8unsustainable growth in the Medicaid program; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Medicaid Maintenance of Effort (MOE) provisions
10contained in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) require states to
11maintain eligibility standards, methodologies, and procedures
12that were in place on the date of the enactment of the ACA, and
13these MOE requirements seriously impair the ability of states
14in fiscal crises to administer viable Medicaid programs; and
 
15    WHEREAS, In an attempt to control escalating Medicaid costs
16and improve coordination of care for enrollees, Illinois
17enacted comprehensive Medicaid reforms in 2011, including
18changes to require applicants to submit one month of income
19data and proof of Illinois residency when applying for Medicaid
20coverage; and
 
21    WHEREAS, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
22(CMS) submitted written correspondence to the Director of the

 

 

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1Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services blocking
2implementation of these two common sense, bipartisan reforms as
3a violation of the MOE provisions contained in the ACA; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The rejection of these reforms, which are already
5in place in numerous states, hamper Illinois' ability to verify
6which applicants and enrollees are truly eligible for Medicaid
7services, thereby increasing Medicaid costs for both the State
8and federal government; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Relaxation of the MOE requirements in the ACA
10would provide states the flexibility to administer Medicaid
11programs based on factors currently present in each individual
12state and would end the practice of penalizing states that have
13proactively implemented comprehensive coverage provisions
14during more stable economic times; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Illinois' economy continues to struggle while the
16Medicaid program consumes an ever growing percentage of
17available revenues, estimated to result in a $2.4 billion
18end-of-year backlog of Medicaid bills for Fiscal Year 2012; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Allowing additional flexibility in developing
20Medicaid guidelines for eligibility, methodologies, and
21procedures will help Illinois to implement program
22efficiencies to reduce payment backlogs, reduce hardships to

 

 

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1medical providers who are waiting for payments, and safeguard
2care for those verifiably eligible for services; therefore, be
3it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6we urge the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to
7recommend repealing the Medicaid Maintenance of Effort (MOE)
8requirements in the Affordable Care Act which have been cited
9by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in blocking
10bipartisan, common sense Medicaid reforms; and be it further
 
11    RESOLVED, That that we urge the Congress of the United
12States to vote to repeal the Medicaid Maintenance of Effort
13(MOE) requirements to allow states to have the flexibility to
14administer Medicaid programs based on current circumstances in
15each state with the goal of providing access to care to those
16truly in need and eligible for assistance; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
18presented to the 12 members of the Joint Select Committee on
19Deficit Reduction, members of the Illinois Congressional
20delegation, the Speaker of the United States House of
21Representatives, the Majority Leader of the United States
22Senate, and the President of the United States.