Medicaid Concerns Get Increased Focus From APA

APA's Committee on Public Funding for Psychiatric Services and the Assembly Committee on Public and Community Psychiatry have spearheaded the formation of a new Medicaid Advisory Group (MAG).

The MAG, which is now being formed, will consist of members from each state with expertise on Medicaid. It is similar to APA's Medicare Advisory Corresponding Committee.

The Assembly committee had reported to the Assembly in November 2003 its concern about the impact of Medicaid cuts on the care of the seriously mentally ill. Its report highlighted the fact that “the optional state services under Medicaid that were created for the care of the mentally ill during the '90s, when the economy was robust, are now most vulnerable to these cutbacks.”

Bhasker J. Dave, M.D., former chair of the Assembly Committee on Public and Community Psychiatry, told Psychiatric News that the MAG would meet a need for a structured information exchange between individual states and APA at the national level.

APA's Office of Healthcare Systems and Financing (OHSF) will maintain a central database of MAG concerns. Examples of issues are psychiatric bed availability, emergency room visits, and criteria for Medicaid eligibility. Information will be shared through a list serve maintained by OHSF.

In April 2004 the Assembly approved the recommendation that each Area representative provide to the OHSF the name of one psychiatrist from each state within that Area to serve on the MAG. ▪