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Lawmakers press governor's office over portal, Flowood meetings and transparency
Summary
Legislators criticized the portal that collected 145 responses in July 2025, questioned invitation-only meetings in Flowood, and pressed for outreach logs, guest lists and a list of responding entities to ensure rural stakeholders were included.
Legislators used the hearing to press for greater transparency about how the governor's office collected public input for the Rural Health Transformation plan and who was consulted during plan development.
Chair (speaker S1) told the director that while the governor's office reported a July 2025 portal that collected 145 responses, many lawmakers said they could not find the portal on the public site and described the posting as effectively hidden. "When you go on the front page or whatever you call it, there's a box that clearly says, we're gonna tell you later where this information is," the chair said. "Maybe so, but you've gotta know the secret code of how to find it." The chair asked for a guest list from an invitation-only Flowood meeting and for the names and counties of entities that responded to the portal.
Richard Grimes (S2) said he was not present when earlier outreach occurred and that he could not personally explain how the portal was publicized. He said the governor's office would take questions back to staff and provide contact information through the committee chair and that reporting will follow CMS-approved processes. Lawmakers requested lists of respondents, outreach methods, and Flowood invitees to assess whether rural counties and small providers had a meaningful opportunity to participate.
