Missouri ends Medicaid coverage of chiropractor treatments

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri’s Medicaid health insurance program for low-income and disabled residents has ended its coverage of chiropractic services as part of a money-saving move.

As part of budget negotiations in May, the House moved to end the service, which had been part of the MO HealthNet program since 2018, saving an estimated $658,000 annually.

The decision affects about 3,000 recipients out of a total of 1.2 million Missourians who are enrolled in MO HealthNet.

Federal Medicaid rules do not mandate chiropractic coverage, allowing the state to drop it as an optional benefit.

The coverage ended Wednesday, the first day of the state’s new fiscal year. Gov. Mike Kehoe signed the budget on Tuesday.

In response to the decision, chiropractors warned the cut could cost the state more in the long run if people turn to emergency rooms for treatment or increase their opioid usage to accommodate back pain.

“It’s truly heartbreaking to see them make that kind of cut,” said Mike Munro, a Creve Coeur chiropractor who is president of the Missouri Chiropractic Physicians Association.

The decision to implement the program in 2018 came in response to the opioid crisis. By adding chiropractors into the Medicaid program, supporters said, enrollees could find alternative ways to address pain.

“Patients won’t have the access to chiropractic services anymore,” Munro said. “The true loser is certainly the patients.”

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