Potential issues in the state women’s health program

[TexasTowelie]

Planned Parenthood has been providing an estimated 44% of the services in the women’s health care program. Now that the state is establishing its own program, the question is, Who will provide these services?

There are two basic problems: (1) How does the state recruit physicians into the program? Reimbursement rates haven’t improved. (2) How do patients know where to go for services?

One possible answer to the latter question is FQHCs — Federally Qualified Health Centers. But the state cut funding to FQHCs last session, and the creation of new FQHCs has not kept pace with the demand. The existing facilities don’t have the capacity to pick up the slack, and they have staffing issues of their own. The state also pared back the residency training program that is the pipeline for new physicians who specialize in the services (not abortions) that used to be delivered by Planned Parenthood.

Where will the state get the money to fund the program? That is probably the least of the concerns. Perry can find the money. The Women’s Health Program exists. It will change from a 90% Medicaid match program to a state-run program that foregoes federal dollars — all for the sake of politics. The state will also forfeit millions of dollars in federal family planning funds.

http://www.texasmonthly.com/blogs/burkablog/

[sonias]

1. Perry is nutso

How in the hell does he think he's going to run the program and serve at least as many women and do it all for the amount of money he's willing to spend on it.

I can see this fiasco a mile away.

The most likely outcome is that the 44% of the services that were being delivered by Planned Parenthood will have to be absorbed by emergency rooms. As most readers are well aware, this is the most expensive level of care, and the state will do what it has traditionally done in circumstances like this, which is push the burden down to the local level. County hospitals are going to have to eat the costs, with the result that local property taxes will rise in counties that have hospital districts. In other words, the shutting down of the federal program will result in a tax increase. It is not only the cost that is an issue. The obvious difference between Planned Parenthood and the emergency room, as a deliverer of services is that there is no continuity of care in the emergency room. The result could be an increase of acute episodes that are a significant cost driver in prenatal care.

[Ilsa]

2. Watch for the boom in poverty. nt