Monday, May 23, 2005

Governors Say Major Reform Only Salvation for Medicaid  Psychiatric News story - "The Medicaid program is threatening fiscal disaster for states, said Virginia Gov. Mark Warner (D), chair of the National Governors Association. In a Webcast sponsored by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Warner said rapidly escalating costs associated with the 40-year-old entitlement program were threatening states with financial ruin. He called for multiple approaches to reform, including tax credits to provide individuals and families an incentive to purchase long-term-care insurance, regulatory reform to address the problem of 'asset transfer' by which families may transfer wealth from an individual so the individual may qualify for Medicaid, widespread incorporation of information technology to improve efficiency, and drug-pricing reform..."