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Committee advances broad Medicaid 'med‑tech' bill and companion postpartum screening bill
Summary
A Senate committee reported a large "med‑tech" Medicaid bill (SB 2867) containing multiple changes requested by Medicaid and CMS, and a related bill (SB 2874) to require postpartum depression screenings and prohibit step therapy for postpartum depression; an amendment was adopted to add nonstatin cardiovascular drugs.
A Mississippi Senate committee reported a comprehensive Medicaid technical bill (Senate Bill 2867) that makes multiple programmatic and reimbursement changes at the request of Medicaid and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and also reported a companion bill (Senate Bill 2874) that mandates postpartum depression screening coverage and bars step therapy for postpartum depression.
Senator Blackwell, presenting SB 2867, said much of the bill is at the request of Medicaid and CMS and that a similar measure had passed the Senate last year but stalled in the House. "The vast majority of these changes that are in this bill are either at the request of Medicaid or CMS," he said. He listed provisions including authorization for value-based payment models, changes to pediatrician reimbursement rates (percent not specified in committee remarks), limiting managed care and Medicaid use of step therapy for postpartum depression, shortening eyeglass replacement from every five years to every two years, allowing ambulatory surgery centers to be reimbursed up to a percentage of Medicare ambulatory surgery rates (percentage not specified), and covering various sleep apnea products.
Blackwell also said SB 2867 would "allow Medicaid to implement reimbursement models for autism spectrum disorder, sports participation physicals, GLP-1 medications, and coverage for postpartum depression," create a perinatal risk management service in cooperation with the Department of Health, define "adult day care facility" and set related regulations effective July 26, remove a restriction on presumptive eligibility, and delete language that had restricted psychiatric beds in DeSoto County. "We prohibit Medicaid for reimbursing any transgender transition procedures," he added when listing changes.
Senator Bunn asked whether the bill "fixes the problems with presumptive eligibility in pregnant women," and the chair responded, "Yes, sir. It does." Senator McMain asked about a fiscal note; the chair said a fiscal estimate will be available before the floor discussion. Senator Boyd offered and the committee adopted an amendment to add coverage of "any non statin medication that has unique indication to reduce the risk of major cardiovascular event in primary prevention and secondary prevention patients." The amendment was adopted by voice vote and the committee reported the bill.
Senate Bill 2874, presented by Senator Boyd and described as accompanying the tech bill, requires insurers and Medicaid to provide and pay for postpartum depression screenings and bars step therapy requirements for postpartum depression treatment. Boyd cited a Mississippi State University-commissioned study she offered to committee members about the economic impact of postpartum depression in Mississippi and said the bill aligns with neighboring states that mandate such screenings.
Committee members asked for a fiscal estimate for SB 2867; the chair said it will be provided prior to floor consideration. Both bills were reported out of committee by voice votes; the transcript does not record a roll-call tally. Several provisions listed in committee remarks (for example, exact reimbursement percentages for pediatricians and ambulatory surgery centers) were described as "up to a percent" without a specific numeric percentage in the committee discussion and therefore are not reported here as precise figures.
