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Wyoming outlines 'Bear Care' catastrophic plan and $500M placeholder in Rural Health Transformation application
Summary
Department of Health Director Stephan Johansen described a conceptual catastrophic ‘Bear Care’ benefit inside Wyoming’s Rural Health Transformation (RHT) application and a placeholder federal spending authority; lawmakers pressed on sustainability, perpetuity financing and negotiations with CMS.
Director Stephan Johansen told the Joint Appropriations Committee the Wyoming Department of Health included a conceptual public health benefit—branded in the application as 'Bear Care'—in its Rural Health Transformation (RHT) federal application and that the department has included a federal spending‑authority placeholder in its budget in case an award is made.
Johansen said Bear Care is intended to be a limited, catastrophic coverage option that would pay for major, non‑shoppable episodes of care (for example, emergency department visits and inpatient admissions), not a full replacement for Affordable Care Act marketplace plans. He described the concept as designed to cover the ‘‘bare necessities’’ of major medical events…
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