It’s been an exciting month of negotiations and strategizing as we move quickly toward the end of the Legislative Session.
One of our priority issues, postpartum Medicaid expansion, was getting sidetracked in the challenging conversations around Medicaid repeal, cost containment, and other measures under consideration, but despite these challenges, we managed to get a postpartum bill passed! House Bill 633 will allow women to keep the health care coverage they receive under Medicaid for a full 12 months after delivery, rather than just 60 days the current program covers. This will cover the various health challenges many new moms face after the birth of a new baby, without the additional obstacle of losing health care. The bill has passed through the House and Senate and is waiting to be signed by the Governor’s office.
We have also been in discussions to guide tobacco control funding options through the Legislature, however the new budget process has made this extremely difficult. Certain funds have already gone forward as part of agency maintenance budgets, while other Millennium Fund dollars are still being allocated through new spending requests, as well as supplemental budget requests. We’re waiting for finalized budget bills to move through both the Senate and the House to determine the total amount of tobacco control funding and where it is being spent.
We did manage to stop legislation that would have triggered a repeal of Medicaid expansion, HB 419, and were able to prevent other problematic Medicaid bills from coming forward. We will likely be doing more work on this over the interim, as the Legislature is still trying to reduce the Medicaid budget, and working on different paths to get there.
We will continue to keep you updated and informed, and we appreciate your continued support as we move quickly toward the end of the 2024 Legislative Session
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