FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 13th, 2015
ANCHORAGE – In an e-mail response to a concerned constituent House Majority Leader Charisse Millett (R-Anchorage) confirmed that the House leadership has no intention to approve Medicaid expansion during the current special session.
In the e-mail Millett wrote, “Having the input of Alaskans on the issue of Medicaid is incredibly important. I can promise you that my colleagues and I are going to spend this interim thoroughly evaluating the Governor’s bill, as well as looking for further efficiencies and solutions to rampant problems found in a recent audit of the Department of Health and Social Services and the MMIS system.”
In fact, the audit referenced is outdated, and in recent testimony before the House Finance Committee DHSS commissioner Val Davidson and others have assured legislators that the systems are now operating at 90 percent efficiency, and that even unpaid claims are being cleared up within two billing cycles.
The state and its systems are ready for expansion now according to DHSS officials, and a majority of Alaskans want this critical expansion that would bring 4,000 jobs and millions of dollars to the state.
For more information contact Andy Josephson at (907) 269-0265.
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