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Committee debates Medicaid rate increase for obstetric care; measure amended then fails
Summary
The Joint Labor, Health & Social Services Committee considered a legislative draft to raise Medicaid reimbursement for obstetric services and to increase cost coverage for critical access hospitals on Oct. 16 but defeated the measure in a 6-8 roll-call after amendment and debate.
The Joint Labor, Health & Social Services Committee considered a bill to raise Medicaid payments for obstetric care and for critical access hospitals but ultimately voted it down on Oct. 16.
The bill (26LSO134) would have raised physician reimbursement for obstetric and gynecologic services to a percentage of the Medicare rate and increased Medicaid cost coverage for critical access hospitals with labor-and-delivery services. The Legislative Service Office (LSO) summary and Medicaid staff said the draft included an appropriation request — about $200,000 general fund and matching federal funds for professional services and about $8.3 million general fund plus matching federal funds targeted to critical access hospital inpatient cost coverage.
Why it mattered
Proponents said the measure would shore up services in rural Wyoming where hospitals have closed labor-and-delivery units and births have declined in many communities. Jacques Beveridge, an OB/GYN who testified for the…
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