State legislators, in an attempt to balance the budget, have cut care options for some terminally ill Arizonans, and hospices may have to repay the state for services already provided.
A footnote in the Legislature's 2007 General Appropriation Act allowed the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System to match federal funds for hospice services needed by acute-care patients. It was a one-year appropriation that was renewed in 2008, but not for the fiscal year that began on July 1, 2009. Even though legislators approved the budget in July, AHCCCS continued authorizing hospice payments for another six months.
Last month, AHCCCS sent a letter to providers telling them that the funding had been eliminated, and it suggested they would have to repay the state.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Arizona Stops Funding for Some Medicaid Hospice Services
The Arizona Daily Star reported yesterday that the state's Medicaid program (known as the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System) no longer funds hospice services for some Medicaid patients. Patients enrolled in the long-term care program will continue to receive hospice benefits, however. The article reports that the 541 patients who received care under the program last year would not be eligible today.
