Texas loses Medicaid funding in effort to spite Planned Parenthood

[deminks]

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/15/1074804/-Texas-loses-Medicaid-funding-in-effort-to-spite-Planned-nbsp-Parenthood-?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dailykos%2Findex+%28Daily+Kos%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Last Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that they would be informing the State of Texas that the state would lose basic health and family planning services funding from Medicaid because it is in violation of federal law. The state wrote Planned Parenthood out of the state's Women's Health Program, a Medicaid-waiver program.

As of today, Texas has been officially informed that the funding is lost, via this letter from HHS official Cindy Mann, director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations (CMSO). Here's the key part:

Texas has elected to move forward with a State rule that restricts freedom of choice of health care providers for women enrolled in WHP effective March 14, 2012 Consistent with longstanding statutory provisions that assure free choice of family planning providers, the Demonstration does not provide the State the authority to impose such a limitation, and we advised the State in our December 12, 2011 letter that we had concluded that such authority would not be granted. We very much regret the State's decision to implement this rule, which will prevent women enrolled in the program from receiving services from the trusted health care providers they have chosen and relied upon for their care. Last year, nearly half of all the services under WHP were provided by clinics that are likely to be excluded from the program under the new rule.

In light of Texas' actions, CMS is not in a position to extend or renew the current Demonstration, except for purpose of phasing out this Demonstration.

(end snip)

Wow. The war on women continues. Texas moves to third worldliness. Banana republicanism.

[Angry Dragon]

1. Another blow to women and families

The leaders of Texas will not care

[kestrel91316]

11. Indeed. They are probably slapping themselves on the back.

They'll get those lazy, shiftless colored folk to leave the state even if it destroys the whole place, by gum.

[Angry Dragon]

13. color has nothing to do with it

republicans just hate

[kestrel91316]

16. Oh, I strongly suspect the ijits believe that most Medicaid recipients

are brown people.

[Angry Dragon]

19. True

[stillwaiting]

2. Well, it looks like this is one way the fascists in right wing states can...

... eliminate Medicaid.

Truly disgusting.

[w8liftinglady]

3. Good Grief!

I am a nurse here. I already see way too many patients who put off going to the doc due to lack of coverage.Once they get amputated,at least they qualify for medicaid.We lead the nation in uninsured....it would be even higher,except we have a LOT of folks on Medicaid and Medicare.All in the name of jaeyzus,Thanks to Rick Perry and his bunch.

[Horse with no Name]

4. Not to mention the pregnant women

We will be seeing a spike in the infant mortality rate.

Nice to see you w8!I just sent you a pm.

[w8liftinglady]

5. It absolutely kills me.

They have closed a couple of hospitals in both Dallas and Tarrant counties due to ... no funding.
The right-to-lifers routinely picket Planned Parenthood.
It's a huge mess...and just going to get worse.

[Horse with no Name]

6. Which hospitals have closed?

I hadn't heard about that.

[w8liftinglady]

8. ...

Integra Hospital -Plano
DFW Medical Center- Grand Prarie
Lancaster regional Hospital- Lancaster
Baylor Southwest- Ft Worth
Osteopathic Medical Center Ft Worth

...those are a few off the top of my head

[Horse with no Name]

20. There was the one in Mesquite also

although arguably it should have been closed.

[Ilsa]

7. I know a pregnant woman in Texas

and she and her toddler are on Medicaid. She's 26 and high risk. If the state doesn't fund healthcare for former Medicaid recipients, there will be a lot of sick moms and babies born. And they'll cost more to care for.

They won't be able to move to another state. It isn't that easy moving out of Texas. It takes money.

Texas GOP politicians deserve a nasty reception from the public.

[kestrel91316]

12. It won't cost anything. Texas WILL NOT PROVIDE FOR THEM.

They expect them to move out of state. Texas doesn't WANT any residents who don't have private medical insurance, period. That's obvious.

[Ilsa]

18. The Lege thinks people can up and move?

She can't. She isn't near a state line. Her baby-daddy is working in Texas in the same town, and custodial parent can't move across state lines without either the other parent's permission or a judge's order.
She'll end up giving birth by going thru the ER. I hope her blood pressure problems (it's primary hypertension, not caused by lifestyle choices) and her placenta previa don't kill her. But without a scheduled C-section, a poor outcome is very possible.

[kestrel91316]

22. And thus she will wind up dead. Which would be the real objective.

[toddwv]

9. This is an absolute shame.

Hopefully some good will come out of this and people will realize the importance of these programs.

[w8liftinglady]

10. Unfortunately,They are trying like crazy...

to close the HUGE safety net in Dallas... Parkland Hospital. It is where 90% of poor people get healthcare in Dallas and surrounding counties.

[Horse with no Name]

15. The last story that I saw

looks like they might be successful.

[FarLeftFist]

14. What does Rick Perry care, Texas is already ranked last for healthcare. Plus ya know, RICK PERRY.

[tledford]

21. Moves? eom

[LynneSin]

23. Tom Delay really fucked that state up

He laid the plans to congressional districting back in 2002 that will make it almost impossible for democrats to ever gain a majority in the TX house or senate.

This is why we need to pass redistricting laws on a federal level - states like Texas and Pennsylvania are so badly germandered that we are totally screwed in those states and no chance of it being fixed.