Medicaid block grants and the proposed Medicaid fiscal accountability regulation (MFAR) pose new financial threats to providers and states, according to Fitch Ratings, the financial rating company.
MFAR poses the greater threat, Fitch believes, noting in a new analysis that it could
…reduce total Medicaid spending nationally by $37 billion and $44 billion annually…and by $23 billion to $30 billion for hospitals alone. States, and to some extent providers, would respond to MFAR’s implementation with measures to mitigate the negative fiscal implications.
Block grants, through what has been named the Healthy Adult Opportunity program, also pose a threat, with Fitch explaining that
Capping federal Medicaid contributions, even for a subset of beneficiaries, poses risks to state budgets and those entities reliant on state funding, including local governments and providers. States would need to find revenue or cost savings, either in Medicaid or elsewhere, to offset reduced federal contributions.
Learn more about the potential impact of the proposed Medicaid fiscal accountability regulation and Medicaid block grants in the Fitch Ratings analysis “Fitch Rtgs: Medicaid Changes Will Affect States, NFP Healthcare Providers.”