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My wife and I never thought it would be this difficult to prescribe and schedule an appointment for our son with special needs. He has severe autism and epilepsy, requiring daily medication and regular clinic visits. Since he is disabled, he is eligible for Medicaid which turns out to be the only way to get everything he needs. But appointments usually take months, and prescriptions are often delayed.
A few days ago, one of his prescriptions took so long to be approved that he had to take another 24 hours. Few things are more dangerous for someone like him. We looked at him like a hawk and made sure nothing was wrong. .
Fights have never been this hard. Only three years ago, the drug was approved almost immediately and an appointment could be made weeks in advance.
Then, at the start of the pandemic, Washington DC forced Arkansas and all states into one of the dumbest policies imaginable. He bribed states with federal money to keep Medicaid after he was no longer eligible. They are using a precious resource that could go to people in real need.
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today, State Estimate, a staggering 586,998 Arkansas people are on Medicaid and shouldn’t be. That’s more than a sixth of her in the state’s population, and more. Half of all Medicaid recipients in Arkansas.
They signed up for the program after losing their jobs and time during the pandemic but are now back in the workforce or fully employed. He earns too much to keep up with medical care, but every day makes it more difficult for his son to get the care he needs. increase.
FILE – Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaks after taking the oath of office on the steps of the Arkansas State Capitol in Little Rock, Arkansas, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (Associated Press)
Thankfully, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders refuses to let this injustice go unchecked. As of April 1, states are finally free to remove ineligible individuals from Medicaid, and Gov. Sanders is doing so as quickly as possible. Her administration’s stated goal is to complete the process by September at the latest.
Why do other states continue to ignore people like him? The organization I work for has filed a Freedom of Information Request with every state agency that oversees Medicaid.As of March It is estimated that of the total Medicaid population of over 100 million, at least 21 million beneficiaries are ineligible.
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not yet 4 other states We have also started the process of weeding out the ineligibles, and will wait until the summer or fall for most of the rest to start. All but seven will not fully regain their sanity on Medicaid until mid-2024, a time period when it will be more difficult for people who need Medicaid to access care, and he will be aged between 12 and 14. It’s been months.
These states are failing a basic test of compassion and competence. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has repeatedly instructed states not to unenroll ineligible people too soon, with the implied threat that swift action could elicit federal response there is.
File – President Biden visited IBM to announce a $20 billion investment in New York’s Hudson Valley. (Fox News Digital Image Direct)
The mainstream media has been piling up — see the recent Politico article accusing Arkansas of “disrupting” and “overlooking” the people. It’s part of the larger liberal narrative that any setback in government programs is heartless, even when people like my son are already endangered by the runaway welfare state.
The Biden administration seems to have ulterior motives. While urging states to take time to fix Medicaid, we are working on an order to end the program permanently. In the CMS proposed a rule It prevents states from using the most effective means of determining who is eligible, such as face-to-face interviews or requests for change of employment. I want to stay on Medicaid until
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That means fewer resources and more struggles for people like my son who are seriously ill and have nowhere else to turn. His health would have been much more at risk if we had, but thankfully we live in Arkansas.
Hopefully, more governors will follow Sanders’ lead and stand with the people for whom Medicaid was created. No one should have to endure what my family has had over the past few years.
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