Appropriations Committee advances Medicaid overhaul, PBM transparency bill and cybersecurity measures; multiple bills pass

The Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday advanced a slate of bills covering Medicaid changes, pharmacy benefit manager oversight, cybersecurity best practices, and other agency and budget matters, approving most measures by roll call.

Senators spent the longest portion of discussion on Senate Bill 2, a revision to Indiana’s Medicaid programs that would direct the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) to seek federal approval to move parts of the HIP expansion into a waiver, allow a cap on who may be enrolled if the federal government permits, and add certain work and volunteer requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents. Senator Brown described the amendment’s intent as “right-sizing” the program to reduce wait lists and better target services. “If you want those wait lists to go down, we need to get people off that shouldn’t be on so we can really take care of the people that need it the most,” Brown said.

Senator Garten, who helpfully noted agency and federal discussions, told colleagues the bill sets legislative intent for the FSSA secretary to negotiate with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), but cautioned the state cannot implement provisions that CMS will not approve. “What we’re doing is basically setting in code our legislative intent for the secretary of FSSA to negotiate that with CMS and the federal government,” Garten said. Committee amendments removed a 36-month limit on eligibility and added language making a proposed 500,000-person cap “subject to federal law.” The amended bill passed committee 9-4.

The committee also heard extended debate about an amendment that would restrict advertising of Medicaid programs…