The probability that Florida will see $1 billion in extra federal Medicaid money is growing dimmer with U.S. Senate Republicans blocking the measure from advancing this week and drawing concern from Florida lawmakers who partially built the state budget around the likely delivery of those dollars.
“Oh my God, that’s devastating. That will kill this state,” said Sen. Durell Peaden, R-Crestview, the chair of the Senate’s Health and Human Services budget committee.
The 2010-2011 budget crafted by lawmakers this spring includes $230 million in expenditures and $730 million in reserves that is dependent on the state receiving an extension of the Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentage (FMAP). Funding for nursing homes, hospices, the Bright Futures Scholarship program and Everglades restoration are all propped up by the promise of federal dollars, which only a few months ago seemed certain to be approved by Congress.
A spokesman for the Gov. Charlie Crist said the governor’s office would monitor developments involving FMAP as well as tax revenue collections to determine if the budget needs to be amended.
“While we are disappointed that Congress failed to act, we remain hopeful that an FMAP extension will be approved before the end of the year,” said Crist spokesman Sterling Ivey in an e-mail to the News Service.
State officials still aren’t entirely sure how big of a financial impact the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will have on state coffers, but there is a sense that it could be damaging to the state’s fiscal health as property values decline and businesses dependent on tourism and the fishing industry struggle in the face of the spill. Many lawmakers and social services providers already considered the budget to be relatively threadbare and do not want to see any more cuts. Add in the prospect of not getting FMAP dollars and there could be some painful cuts for state-funded programs.
“This is just overwhelming that our delegation in Congress did not have the manpower to get this in place,” Peaden said.
Nursing home industry lobbyist Tony Marshall said there was still hope that Congress will extend the extra Medicaid help, but said it appeared likely Medicaid will show a deficit in nursing home payments at first. Lawmakers cut nursing home Medicaid rates in the budget that goes into effect July 1, but Gov. Charlie Crist restored the money with a veto. Marshall, of the Florida Health Care Association, said he anticipated that nursing homes would see their Medicaid reimbursement rate set at pre-cut levels, even with the failure so far to pass the FMAP extension.
“Now it just puts the Medicaid budget into a hole,” Marshall said.
The legislation including the FMAP also extended unemployment benefits that would have affected 119,200 unemployed Foridians, which also drew criticism from many lawmakers.
By Kathleen Haughney
The News Service of Florida
News Service of Florida Editor David Royse contributed to this report.
