Dive Brief:
- Wyoming has paid $1.3 million to 18 hospitals since July under a new subsidy program, reports the Chicago Tribune.
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The new fund to cover treatment costs of uninsured patients was created after Gov. Matt Mead (R) failed to convince state lawmakers to expand Medicaid.
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According to the report, the state has spent more than half of the created fund. Wyoming has been allocated $2 for the subsidy fund.
Dive Insight:
The program reimburses hospitals to offset burdens saddled upon them by poor and uninsured patients.
Historically, according to the report, Mead has opposed Medicaid expansion. However, in the face of fiscal adversity for the state, he urged lawmakers to approve the expansion bill as “Wyoming could no longer afford to forgo federal funds,” reports the Tribune. The subsidy bill took effect without his signature.
Payments range from under $2,000 to over $282,000, reports the Tribune.
David Bush, spokesman for the governor, told the Chicago Tribune Mead hasn't decided if he will ask the Legislature to expand Medicaid in the 2016 legislative session.