Raleigh, N.C. – State House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) responded Saturday to the Governor’s veto of funding and reforms for North Carolina’s transition to managed care in its Medicaid program.
House Bill 555 Medicaid Transformation Implementation provides revisions and funding for Medicaid’s long-term transition to managed care that is scheduled to begin on November 1, 2019, but was vetoed by Gov. Cooper on Friday.
Medicaid transformation in North Carolina was recently highlighted by state Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen in the North Carolina Medical Journal as a groundbreaking reform “building an innovative, whole-person-centered and well-coordinated system of care that addresses both medical and non-medical drivers of health.”
The New York Times also highlighted the transition this week. In his veto message, Gov. Cooper said the state “needs to do more, and do it comprehensively.”
State House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) said the veto halts the hard work of legislators and health care administration officials on the Medicaid’s transition to managed care.
“Blocking Medicaid transformation funding harms collaborative efforts among state lawmakers and the Governor’s administration officials to effectively reform one of the largest public programs in North Carolina,” said Speaker Tim Moore.
“Improving the services of a health care safety net that serves 1-in-5 North Carolinians is a vital and complex initiative by state leaders. As Medicaid reforms begin to take effect, it makes no sense to stand in the way of operational funding for improvements to a program that serves 2 million North Carolinians.”
H.B. 555 is sponsored by Senior House Appropriations Committee co-chairs Rep. Donny Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth) and Rep. Jason Saine (R-Lincoln), and state House Health Committee co-chairs Rep. Donna White (R-Johnston) and Rep. Josh Dobson (R-McDowell).