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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 9, 2012)
Maj' 9, 2012 il’1' ^ïortlanb (Dbsewer Page 7 Feds Support Kitzhaber Health Plan Initiative to invest in preventive care ( AP) — The Obama administra tion is buying into an ambitious health care initiative in Oregon, an nouncing Thursday it has tenta tively agreed to chip in $ 1.9 billion over five years to help get the pro gram off the ground. Oregon hopes to prove that states can save billions on Medicaid with out sacrificing the quality of health care. Gov. John Kitzhaber's plan would invest in preventive care to keep patients healthy so they don't need expensive hospitalizations. "If this works, I think other states are going to be looking at this as a way to manage that patient popula tion," said Kitzhaber, a Democrat and former emergency room physi cian who has worked for decades on reforming the health care system. The federal government could save $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years if all 50 states adopted Oregon's approach, the governor has said. M e d ic a id , w h ic h p ro v id e s health coverage for low-incom e A m ericans, is jo intly funded by the state and fed eral g o v e rn Family nurse practitioner Terrance James examines Kamiyan Cooper, 1, as his mother Kesha Wilson looks on, at the Multnomah County's Mid County Health Center. The Obama administration is buying into Oregon's ambitious health care initiative, tentatively agreeing to chip in $1.9 billion over five years to help get the program o ff the ground. (AP photo) ments. Federal officials have not yet agreed to grant O regon a w aiver from standard M edicaid regulations, which is needed for the program to be im plem ented and the money to be spent. The financial commitment from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, while still not final, is a clear public endorsement of the concept and an indication that the administration believes the initia- tive holds promise to save money. The state anticipates savings of $ 11 billion to state and federal budgets over the next decade by reducing duplicated treatments and avoid able hospitalizations. Finding ways to slow the growth in health care costs is a critical chal lenge as baby boomers age and President Barack Obama's health care overhaul extends coverage to millions more Americans, many of whom will join Medicaid in 2014. Under Obama's Affordable Care Act, the federal government will pay most of the costs for the new patients. The Oregon plan would create "coordinated care organizations" to manage all mental, physical and dental care for 600,000 low-income patients on the Oregon Health Plan, the state's M edicaid pro gram. It would focus particularly on the sickest patients with the highest costs, especially people with chronic conditions such as diabetes and asthma or with m en tal health concerns. The care organizations would have to work within fixed budgets, with broad leeway to spend the way they think is best. The ones that are most successful at lowering costs would see the largest profits. The model makes it possible to pay for services that keep people healthy but don't get much funding — such as paying caseworkers to make sure patients go to medical appointments and take their medi cations. The state Legislature over whelmingly endorsed the idea this year and last, though some Repub licans complained that it would in crease the government's role in health care. The federal money will lessen the impact of payment cuts to providers and help them pay the upfront costs of the new initiative before the sav ings can kick in. Oregon, facing a budget shortfall, planned to severely cut payments to doctors, hospitals and other care providers beginning this summer. The changes will initially apply only to M edicaid patients, but Kitzhaber wants to eventually ex tend it to government workers and the general public. M H M M H M M M M H M M N H M m iN I Food Drive to Stamp Out Hunger Letter carries to pick up donations The com m unity is invited to help stamp out hunger by simply placing a bag of nonperishable food donations by your mailbox on the m orning of Saturday, May 12, for the National Association of L etter Carriers Food Drive. The effort is the largest single day food drive in the world. In Oregon, more than 4,000 letter car riers in urban and rural ar eas will join the n atio n al effort to pick up food from p o s ta l c u s tomers. "On behalf of the Postal Service, I am h o n o re d to p artn er with the N ational A s s o c ia tio n of Letter Car riers and all our e m p lo y ees who will participate in this year's an n u al fo o d Letter carrier Jim Falvey collects food from postal d riv e ," said customers on a previous Letter Carriers Food Drive. S h a w n e e n The annual event returns on Saturday, May 12. Betha, Portland Postm aster. "The need has never been greater. As part o f the com m unity, our letter carriers see the need and know the impact the econom y has had on so many fam ilies. Distribution of emergency food rem ains at record high levels. In average m onth, an estim ated 260,000 people eat m eals from an em ergency food box in Oregon and Clark County, W ashington. T hat’s equivalent to 14 sold-out R ose G ard en A re n as in one m onth. J E F F E R S O N S M IT H FOR MAYOR Thousands of Supporters Including: Prom ise King W k Charlene McGee W Rudy Soto V Bruce W atts V Maceo P e ttis p Erick Flores < Luis Nava Rev. Chuck C urrie Joseph Santos-Lyons S erllda Sum m ers-M cGee Simeon M am arll Kim Nguyen Learn more at www.JeffersonSmlth.com 5 0 3 -610-323 8 ueTierson nas experience managing budgets through tough tim es to p rio ritiz e fro n t-lin e services.*’ Debbie Hussey, 911 dispatcher 2011 Small Business Champion by the Oregon Micreenterprlse Network Sm ith is th e best choice for a tio n .” Suzanne Cohen, Teacher VOTE MAY 15TH
