House Appropriations hears health committee support for $10M provider stabilization grants, debates $4M carve-out

Representative Melissa Black, chair of the House Health Care Committee, told the House Appropriations Committee on Jan. 28 that her panel reviewed the governor's Budget Adjustment Act and endorsed the proposal's health-related requests, including a $10 million provider stabilization appropriation to be administered through the designated agency.

"We found each and every 1 of them favorable. We did straw polls on every single line item, all 1100," Black said, describing the committee's review process. She said the committee did not add funding beyond the governor's proposals but raised concerns to ensure intent for part of the stabilization funds would be honored.

The committee discussed language around a prior $4 million request originally tied to mental health and substance-use residential treatment facilities. Committee members said that interim drafting moved that $4 million into a broader $10 million pool administered by the agency referenced in the BAA. Black and others urged that, even if funding is combined into the larger $10 million, the original intent to prioritize residential substance-use and mental-health facilities not be lost.

A Joint Fiscal Office staff member told the committee, "It should leverage federal dollars. These are all Medicaid providers. That's why it's in DEVA," noting the likely federal match opportunities for Medicaid-funded providers.

Committee members debated specific drafting choices that would protect the original carve-out while allowing flexibility. One proposal discussed by staff would read roughly that up to $4,000,000 of the appropriation be used to assist residential behavioral health facilities, and that the balance be available to other health and human services providers if the residential need did not exhaust the $4,000,000. Another exchange noted that current draft language reads "not less than $4,000,000," which some members worried could inadvertently lock funding in one category if actual need fell slightly above or below that threshold.

Members also asked staff to confirm related budget references and larger line-item placements: on the chart provided by House Health Care, a $35,500,000 general-fund figure was listed under "case load and utilization," and some committee members sought clarity whether that amount corresponded to the reclassification and post-COVID Medicaid estimate discussed in a prior session. Staff said they would follow up with the appropriate narratives and budget-line references.

No formal motion or vote on final language for the appropriation occurred during the hearing. Committee members said they planned to coordinate with Agency of Human Services staff and others offline to reconcile preferred drafting and ensure the appropriation's intent — particularly the priority for residential substance use and mental health treatment facilities — was preserved in the final bill language.

What happened next: the House Appropriations Committee paused for a brief break and continued markup after the Health Care Committee's testimony.