THE OUTLOOK FOR MEDICAID: “CLEARING STORM, FOGGY FORECAST”
A new report from the National Forum for Health Policy states what may look obvious to many lawmakers: the economies of many states have recovered from the recession of the early part of this decade.
Nevertheless, “the forecast (for Medicaid) does not quite call for blue skies. Several factors suggest that the current fiscal stability of states may be short-lived,” according to the report. One reason is that the state revenues that come from state-levied taxes (especially from sales taxes) is slowing. The second reason is that federal grants-in-aid, which have been decreasing since 2006, are unlikely to increase any time soon.
The upshot: states have no choice but to continue to design and test new policies.
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