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Medicaid and human services outline new perinatal, childcare and SNAP actions; warn of HR1 cost risks
Summary
Medicaid and Human Services officials described new managed-care perinatal requirements, presumptive eligibility for pregnant women, childcare investments and a legacy-modernization portal; MDHS warned HR1 changes to SNAP (cost-share tied to error rates) could add tens of millions to state costs unless the error rate falls.
Cindy Bradshaw and MDHS Director Anderson briefed the committee on multiple program changes aimed at improving maternal and child services and on looming federal changes to SNAP funding.
Bradshaw, speaking for Medicaid, said new managed-care contracts that began Jan. 1 require MCOs to hire perinatal medical directors, strengthen case-management ratios for high-risk patients and expand value-based incentives intended to improve maternal outcomes. She described a presumptive-eligibility process that allows trained providers to enroll pregnant women for up to 60 days while their full applications are processed.
Bradshaw noted federal grants and CMS innovation selections that could bring up to $17 million for a 10-year transforming maternal health model (TEMA) and described a cell-and-gene therapy access model focused on high-cost medications (for example, an emerging sickle-cell therapy) that would include manufacturer risk-sharing and targeted patient support.
Director Anderson (MDHS) addressed child care: the agency estimated a 19,390-family waiting list for child-care certificates and said the $15 million appropriated this year funded about 2,100 certificates. The department runs 46 resource-and-referral centers and a new "Elevate" quality initiative and is piloting workforce supports and virtual developmental screenings.
Anderson warned of federal HR1 changes to SNAP that will take effect in stages: beginning Oct. 1, 2026 the state will shoulder 75% of administrative costs (federal share drops to 25%); beginning Oct. 1, 2027 a new state cost-share for benefit payments will be triggered if the state's SNAP payment-error rate exceeds thresholds. The department reported Mississippi's error rate currently exceeds 10% and said bringing it below 8% or 6% would materially reduce future state obligations. MDHS described no-cost technical partnerships with Westat and Code for America to identify error drivers and build verification and data strategies.
Committee members asked whether change-reporting rules and the $125 income-reporting threshold make Mississippi more prone to payment errors; MDHS confirmed Mississippi still uses change reporting, which can increase administrative volatility compared with simplified reporting used in most other states.
Anderson said a multi-agency self-service portal is scheduled to go live in May 2027 to allow clients to apply online for SNAP, TANF, childcare and other services, which the department expects will reduce paper touches and improve accuracy.
