University Students Faced With Tough Decision Of Dropping Out Of School Or Dropping Medicaid Coverage

Brigham Young University-Idaho requires that students have health insurance, but the university no longer accepts Medicaid. The cheapest option available is the university’s student health plan, which does not comply with the Affordable Care Act’s consumer protections. Medicaid news comes out of Michigan, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and New York.

The New York Times: University To Students On Medicaid: Buy Private Coverage, Or Drop Out

Emily and Kullen Langston were enrolling in classes for the winter semester at Brigham Young University-Idaho when they hit an unexpected roadblock. The school, like many others, requires all students to have health coverage. But this month, the university made an unusual announcement: It would no longer accept Medicaid. Ms. Langston, 20, enrolled in the free government insurance program last year after becoming pregnant with the couple’s daughter, who is now 4 months old. Mr. Langston, 22, was planning to sign up for Medicaid in January, when it is set to expand in the state. (Kliff, 11/24)

The Salt Lake Tribune: BYU-Idaho No Longer Accepts Medicaid, And Some Students Are Dropping Out Of School

The controversial decision from BYU-Idaho — a private school owned by the Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — came as a surprise to students last week. School administrators announced the change in an email one day after Idaho received approval letters from the federal government for its Medicaid expansion plan, which voters in the state overwhelmingly supported last year. As many universities do, BYU-Idaho requires students to have health insurance before they can register. Previously, Medicaid qualified as adequate coverage. (Tanner, 11/22)

Post Register: Local Doctors Question BYU-Idaho Medicaid Claims

Brigham Young University-Idaho officials said Wednesday that the university decided to stop accepting Medicaid to waive a student health plan due to concerns for local health care providers. “Due to the health care needs of the tens of thousands of students enrolled annually on the campus of BYU-Idaho, it would be impractical for the local medical community and infrastructure to support them with only Medicaid coverage,” the university said. (Brown and Varnedoe, 11/21)

Past coverage from the (Idaho Falls) Post Register: BYU-Idaho Requiring Students On Medicaid To Also Buy Student Health Plans, Won't Say Why

The Associated Press: Lawsuit Challenges Medicaid Work Requirements In Michigan

Four enrollees in Michigan’s Medicaid expansion program filed a lawsuit Friday challenging work requirements that are set to take effect in January, arguing that the Trump administration lacked the authority to approve the rules that undermine the Affordable Care Act. The lawsuit, brought in federal court in Washington, D.C., asks the judge to declare the federal approval of the requirements illegal and to block them from being implemented. (Eggert, 11/22)

The Hill: Kansas Bishops Defend Support For Placing Conditions On Medicaid Expansion

Kansas Catholic bishops are standing by their request to place conditions on Medicaid expansion in the state. The bishops have taken a stance to withhold their support of Medicaid expansion until the state meets some conditions, including passing a bill to allow citizens to vote on a constitutional amendment to remove abortion as a “natural right.” (Coleman, 11/24)

Kansas City Star: Missouri Program For The Disabled To Run Out Of State Money

Rule plays with and feeds his beloved 12-year-old miniature Schnauzer Elli by himself. Now the life he has made for himself is at risk, because the state program that pays for his home attendant will run out of money this month. The funding allows non-Medicaid eligible Missourians with severe disabilities to get the basic care they need to remain independent of a much more expensive nursing home. (Thomas, 11/25)

The Oklahoman: Report: 476 Older Oklahomans Died Prematurely Because Of Medicaid Non-Expansion

Nearly 500 low-income, older Oklahomans died prematurely because the state did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report. The report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a progressive think tank in Washington, D.C., found that 15,600 deaths among low-income people ages 55 to 64 in a four-year period could have been avoided if all states had expanded Medicaid. Conversely, states that did expand Medicaid averted roughly 19,200 deaths of people in that age range from 2014 through 2017, according to the report. (Forman, 11/24)

Bloomberg: New York’s Budget Gap Swells To $6 Billon On Medicaid Costs

New York’s projected budget gap for the next fiscal year has swelled by almost 60% to $6.1 billion, as spending on Medicaid surges, according a mid-year state budget update. A minimum-wage increase for health care providers, increased enrollments and costs in managed long-term care, and payments to financially distressed hospitals is putting pressure on the state budget. (Braun, 11/22)

This is part of the KHN Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription