Wolf, Casey warn about GOP cuts to Medicaid hurting Pennsylvanians

Beaver County Times (PA)

June 16--With Senate Republicans quietly working on their own health-care reform plan, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and Gov. Tom Wolf partnered on Thursday to warn of the impact more than $800 billion in Medicaid cuts could have on seniors and those receiving nursing care in Pennsylvania.

While the Senate GOP plan remains secret so far, Casey, D-Scranton, said one Republican senator has hinted it reflects 80 percent of the House plan (the American Health Care Act), which the Congressional Budget Office has said would throw 23 million off health insurance plans.

On Wednesday, a new report estimated that the House plan could lead to nearly 1 million job losses across the country by 2026, including 85,000 in Pennsylvania.

"It's not really a health-care bill. It's a scheme to give the very rich a lot more money," Casey said during a conference call with reporters. He predicted that the plan "would be a devastating blow for seniors who need nursing home care or who receive care at home."

The House plan proposed an $834 billion cut to Medicaid, meaning less money to support seniors, low-income children and people fighting substance addiction.

"Republicans need to come out from the back room where this bill is being discussed in secret," Wolf said of the Senate Republican panel formulating a plan, including U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh County.

About 123,000 Pennsylvanians over 55 rely on Medicaid for nursing home care, including 80,000 receiving long-term services and supports (LTSS), Casey said. In Beaver County, 1,643 residents benefit from Medicaid that steers more than $65 million to service providers.

Just under 1,200 Beaver County residents received LTSS at a nursing home between July 2015 and July 2016, according to data provided by Casey's office. That resulted in more than $49 million in Medicaid spending.

Nearly 1,000 home care recipients receive Medicaid in Lawrence County and $33 million goes to their providers. Almost 800 Lawrence County residents received LTSS from July 2015 to July 2016, accounting for nearly $26 million in Medicaid spending in the county.

County data shows that about 10,300 Medicaid recipients for some type of home care account for nearly $360 million in reimbursements to providers just in Allegheny County. Close to 6,600 Allegheny County residents received LTSS from July 2015 to July 2016, accounting for nearly $244 million in Medicaid spending.

Besides the impact on those receiving services funded through Medicaid, reimbursements support a wide range of jobs and care industry-related businesses, said Wolf, who noted that 250,000 jobs in Pennsylvania, such as nurses and health aides, rely on the nursing home and at-home economy.

"We need to make sure that we maintain and protect our health care," Wolf said.

More than 700,000 Pennsylvanians gained coverage through Wolf approving Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, which Republicans have long sought to repeal.

"They're obsessed with repeal," Casey said. "They're obsessed with pleasing a part of their political base who wants the trophy of repeal and they don't care who gets hurt in the process."

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