State survey measures impact of Medicaid cuts

The report, based on a survey of 2,435 Missourians, was conducted by the Missouri Association for Social Welfare and The Missouri Budget Project. Data analysis was provided by Timothy D. McBride, Ph.D., professor of health management policy at St. Louis University’s School of Public Health.

“Medicaid cuts will increase the use of emergency rooms, shifting costs to others and creating extra burdens on safety net providers,” said Jennifer Hill, director of health policy at The Missouri Budget Project, in a news release.

The Missouri Budget Project and the Missouri Association for Social Welfare are calling on the state to restore Medicaid health insurance to the 100,000 low-income Missourians who were cut from the program in 2005.

“Missouri is expecting about $245 million more in revenue than anticipated for this fiscal year, which ends June 30,” Hill said. “This surplus is enough to provide access to health care to everyone who was cut last year, including working parents, the elderly and individuals with disabilities.”

In addition, the state must track the impact of the Medicaid cuts on low-income Missourians, said Sharon Feltman, director of the Health Access Project at the Missouri Association for Social Welfare.

“Many other states require a formal review when changes are enacted,” Feltman said. “Also, the state should evaluate the impact of the loss of federal Medicaid dollars on health care providers and on local economies.”

Because the state is not evaluating the outcomes of the Medicaid cuts, more than 30 nonprofit organizations throughout Missouri developed and administered a written survey.

“This survey is not a random sample of Medicaid enrollees affected by the legislation enacted in 2005,” analyst McBride said. “Rather, it is a self-selected sample from respondents who were willing and able to complete the survey after it was made available to them by the participating organizations.”

Cutbacks

In the survey, 52 percent of respondents affected by the Medicaid changes indicated insecurity about health care, and noted that they don’t know what they will do to access care.

Of the 34 percent who said they will cut back on food as a result of the cuts, 49 percent were elderly, and 45 percent were people with disabilities. And 36 percent of all respondents said they will cut back on utilities.

When asked what services have been lost as a result of Medicaid cuts, 59 percent said they cannot afford or have lost coverage of prescription medications. Access to providers has declined, as 20 percent of affected respondents indicated that their doctors no longer accept them as patients. Dental care access also has been affected, as 40 percent of respondents indicate that they’ve lost dental services coverage.

Assistive devices also are harder to obtain, as 58 percent of elderly respondents and 59 percent of disabled respondents who lost Medicaid coverage said that they cannot get their eyeglasses. Also, 27 percent of elderly respondents who lost coverage said that they lost hearing aid services or cannot get hearing aids.

“The public deserves to hold our elected officials accountable,” Feltman said. “When significant changes are made to health care delivery and access, it is unconscionable that the outcomes are not being measured. We encourage Missourians to contact their legislators about this critical issue.”

The Missouri Association for Social Welfare provides leadership, research, education and advocacy to improve public policies and programs impacting the health and welfare of all people in Missouri.

The Missouri Budget Project is a statewide, nonprofit, nonpartisan fiscal analysis organization that informs the public on Missouri’s budgetary and tax policy options and their impact on moderate and low-income citizens. [[In-content Ad]]