Miss. forfeits $1 million daily in Medicaid funds. Could the money help the 77,000 uninsured citizen

[TexasTowelie]

Miss. forfeits $1 million daily in Medicaid funds. Could the money help the 77,000 uninsured citizens battling mental illness?


By resisting Medicaid expansion, Mississippi is forfeiting more than $1 million a day that could help thousands of uninsured people with untreated mental illnesses and health care providers drowning in uncompensated costs, said state Sen. Hob Bryan, vice chairman of the Senate Medicaid Committee.

“Medicaid expansion is not going to solve the problem with mental health service delivery that we have in the state, but it would help,” said Bryan, D-Amory. “More people would be able to get services because they would have some ability to pay for them, and they would be able to get services more quickly before they are in terrible shape.”

Renewed discussions about expanding Medicaid are coming at a time when a federal court ruling in September slammed the state for over-institutionalizing people with mental illness by failing to provide adequate community-based services.

Mental Health America’s 2020 annual report shows there are 77,000 uninsured Mississippians with a diagnosable mental, behavioral or emotional disorder.

Read more: https://mississippitoday.org/2019/11/05/miss-forfeits-1-million-daily-in-medicaid-funds-could-the-money-help-the-77000-uninsured-citizens-battling-mental-illness/