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Budget Committee hears FSSA on managed-care assessment waiver as lawmakers press on timing and affordability
Summary
FSSA Secretary Mitch Roob told the State Budget Committee the agency submitted a Managed Care Assessment tax waiver to CMS per HB1004; lawmakers pressed whether the assessment would take effect, whether it would be distributed locally and criticized aspects of requiring participant contributions amid tight budgets.
FSSA Secretary Mitch Roob told the State Budget Committee on June 18 that the agency "submitted the Managed Care Assessment tax waiver to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as required by HB1004." The presentation prompted questions from committee members about how the proposed assessment and associated payments would be implemented and who ultimately would bear the cost.
Representative Gregory Porter asked whether the Managed Care Assessment Fee (MCAF) would be distributed at the local level and whether it had any relation to property taxes; Secretary Roob said it did not. Porter also asked whether the "direct payment" referenced in earlier bills would be affected by recent legislative proposals; Roob said FSSA has a preliminary analysis of a Senate revision but stressed the waiver submission to CMS was the immediate step taken under HB1004.
Senator Fady Qaddoura, speaking from his experience working at FSSA, criticized the State's approach to requiring eligible users to contribute, saying the approach "has never worked," and argued the State may be moving prematurely because the federal legislation has not been finalized. Qaddoura also reiterated broader concerns about budget cuts disproportionately shrinking programs under tight fiscal constraints.
Roob defended the agency's posture as implementing federal law and said that program design decisions were driven by compliance requirements; he also said the State expects to recover intergovernmental transfer (IGT) funds and that expenditures were being evaluated with an eye toward cost containment. No formal action on the waiver was recorded during the meeting; Representative Porter asked the chairman to request the waiver documents for Committee review.
The Committee did not vote on policy changes during this presentation. Members signaled they expect further briefing materials and documentation on the waiver, distribution mechanics and any fiscal impacts before taking formal action.
