New State Reports from Families USA
April 15 - 30, 2008

Bad Medicine:
The President's Medicaid Regulations Will Weaken State Economies

Across the country, states are facing the fallout of the recession and the resulting reduction in state revenues. In this difficult economic climate, the Bush Administration has suddenly proposed to change the rules of the state-federal partnership that finances Medicaid and to withdraw an estimated $50 billion in federal funding from state economies over the next five years.

The Administration issued seven new Medicaid regulations in 2007 that, taken together, will sharply reduce the federal funding that states receive for Medicaid services. These new regulations restrict federal funding for rehabilitation services, school-based transportation services, case management, and other crucial services.

These state reports quantify the harm that these regulations will cause to state economies in terms of lost federal dollars, business activity, jobs, and wages.

State-specific reports will be released April 15 through April 30. See the Newsroom for press releases.

Is your state considering other Medicaid cuts? The "Bad Medicine" reports are based on taking a loss of federal dollars in a given state and calculating the corresponding economic impact on business activity, jobs, and wages in that state. If you want to find out what effect a proposed state cut in Medicaid spending would have on your state's economy, check out our updated Medicaid Calculator. It will calculate the loss in business activity, jobs, and wages.

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