Medicaid: Developing a Sustainable Social Welfare Program



Table of Contents

Introduction1

What is Medicaid?1

Brief History of Medicaid2

Why it is important?3

Who does it help?3

The Crisis4

Medicaid in Crisis5

Medicaid Payments Don't Cover the Cost of Service6

Inadequate Payments Restrict Quality of Care Budget6

Reasons for Increase in Medicaid Costs7

Increasing Unemployment7

Immigrants7

Aging Population8

Lack of Health Care Professionals.9

The Role of State and Federal level in Medicaid10

Unsustainable Medicaid Spending at Federal and State levels12

The Result13

Low Provider Participation13

Perverse Incentives14

Conclusion14

Future Plans and Solutions14

Obama care vs. Ryan Medicaid Budget Plan15

References17

Abstract

Medicaid is the health program that covers certain people with low level of resources and income. The program is funded by the Federal and State governments jointly, however, its management is set in the shoulder of states. U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents of USA are covered including, people with certain disabilities, low income adults, and their children. The year 2007 has brought changes in the majority of lives around the globe. Recently, in the year 2010 the plans for expanding the Medicaid surfaced when the President Obama signed Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The act will come in action from January 2014. The coverage will be for people with income up to 133% of the poverty line, and it includes adult without dependent children. The inadequate payments are creating larger and larger gaps between the private health care provider and government health care provider. The reasons for increase in Medicaid cost includes, unemployment, aging population, influx of immigrants, lack of health care professionals, and obesity. Two alternative solutions increase. One is the Obama's Plan and other is the Ryan plan. Former seeks to expand the Medicare while the later seeks to put limit on federal spending and create more flexibility in the states programs. Ryan plan seem to be more appropriate considering the present financial situation and future circumstances.

Medicaid: Developing a Sustainable Social Welfare Program

Introduction

Medicaid is a means-tested, needs-based social protection or social welfare program. Medicaid is the health program that covers certain people and families with low level of resources and income. This paper discusses the Medicaid, as to what it stands for and how it started with. Later, the paper proceeds to finding the causes of increased spending in Medicaid's expenditures. The economic crises have played its role; however, there are other major problems that are increasing this cost like, aging America and shortage of health care professionals. Obama Administration has faced a lot of criticism from oponents on policies to tackle such problems and now the next term elections are having debates upon the policies of present government during its tenure. During the last 12 years the number of Americans in the Medicaid program has doubled, while the funding has not been increased proportionaly. This paper will analyses the possible solutions for having a sustainable Medicaid program that is more efficient and works in the best interests of tax payers and general public.

What is Medicaid?

Society is not homogenous in resources, including talent, health and wealth. However, it is important for the society and the economy as whole to have ...