Brady: This short term extension allows more than 300 local health care providers to continue to offer quality healthcare to our neediest populations in Texas
Texas Insider Report: WASHINGTON D.C. The Woodlands TX Today Congressman Kevin Brady released the following statement on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services decision to grant a 15-month temporary extension of Texas Medicaid 1115 waiver.
This short term extension allows more than 300 local health care providers to continue to offer quality healthcare to our neediest populations in Texas. While I am pleased that the state of Texas and the federal government were able to come to a short-term agreement a longer-term agreement is still needed.
Background: In November the Texas delegation sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requesting the Administration work with Texas to reach an agreement on a renewal of Texas Medicaid 1115 waiver for an additional five years. Section 1115 of the Social Security Act gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the authority to approve experimental pilot or demonstration projects in the Medicaid and CHIP programs.
The purpose of these demonstrations is to give states flexibility to design and improve their programs. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission received a waiver in 2011 that has allowed the state to expand Medicaid managed care and provide incentive payments for health care improvements as well as direct more funding to hospitals that serve large numbers of uninsured patients. Texas five year demonstration waiver runs out in 2016.
