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Release: Missouri Department of Social Services to request suspension of waiver for women’s health program

While suspension process is underway, services will continue to be covered

 

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Gov. Jay Nixon today announced that the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS) will take action consistent with provisions in House Bill 2011 regarding women’s health.  DSS will begin the process of suspending its CMS waiver for the Woman’s Health Services Program. Until this request is approved by CMS and the process is complete, all current services from all current providers will continue to be available to low-income women under this program.

 

The Women’s Health Services Program was implemented by Gov. Blunt’s administration in 2008 under a federal Medicaid waiver. The waiver allows the state to earn federal Medicaid matching funds for almost 90 percent of the program’s cost. The program has operated under the provisions of the federal waiver since its inception. The waiver was most recently reauthorized in 2015 after the General Assembly included the appropriation authority of federal funds for the program in the FY2016 budget.

 

During the 2016 legislative session, the Missouri General Assembly passed HB 2011, which included a provision inconsistent with the terms of the waiver, stating that no funds from the appropriations included in HB 2011 shall be paid to any entity that provides abortion services.  The General Assembly also removed the federal matching funds for the Women’s Health Services Program and replaced them with state general revenue funds.

 

“For nearly a decade, Missouri has provided health care services to low-income women through this federal program, with the federal government picking up 90 percent of the cost,” Gov. Nixon said. “Failing to use these federal funds and expending additional state resources is unnecessary and inefficient, diverting dollars that could have been used for public education and other priorities. I’m disappointed that the legislature has decided to take this fiscally irresponsible approach.”

 

Under the terms of this federal Medicaid waiver, the Department will post the required draft phase-out plan for the Missouri Woman’s Health Services Program on its website.

 

With the publication of this draft plan, the required 30-day public comment period will be open. Comments regarding the suspension of the Women’s Health Waiver will be received by DSS as part of the waiver’s phase-out if they are delivered by regular mail, express, or overnight mail by July 31, 2016 to the attention of the MO HealthNet Director at:

 

Department of Social Services, MO HealthNet Division

P.O. Box 6500

Jefferson City, MO 65102-6500

Attention: MO HealthNet Director

 

Under the terms of federal Medicaid waiver, at the conclusion of the public comment period, the state will provide a summary of each public comment received and the state’s response to the comment on how the state incorporated the comment into a revised phase-out plan. After which, the state will notify CMS of this revised phase-out plan and an effective date of the Missouri Woman’s Health Services Program’s suspension.

 

Until the suspension of federal Medicaid waiver is approved by CMS, which is expected to occur in calendar year 2017, the Missouri Woman’s Health Services Program will continue to provide MO HealthNet coverage for women’s health services to uninsured women ages 18 up to, but not including, age 56 whose family’s modified adjusted gross income does not exceed 201 percent of the federal poverty level for their household size.