skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, May 2, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump replaces Waltz as national security adviser, Rubio takes role for now; Poll: AZ Latino voters 'discouraged' after Trump's first 100 days; AR pre-K suffers from funding gap; Judge bars deportations of Venezuelans from South TX under Alien Enemies Act; Coalition wants to end 'forced labor' in MN prisons.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz is leaving that job to become UN ambassador, bipartisan Arizona poll finds Latino voters dissatisfied by Trump's first 100 days, and Florida mass deportations frighten community members.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural students who face hurdles going to college are getting noticed, Native Alaskans may want to live off the land but obstacles like climate change loom large, and the Cherokee language is being preserved by kids in North Carolina.

Over half-million Virginians risk Medicaid coverage loss under proposed cuts

play audio
Play

Friday, February 21, 2025   

As Congress threatens deep cuts to the Medicaid program, a new report from the health policy research organization KFF showed how some of the proposed changes could end coverage for about 20 million people nationwide, with more than 600,000 in Virginia.

One idea targets the Medicaid expansion federal match rate. The federal government currently pays 90% of the costs for people covered under what's known as the Medicaid expansion, which extended coverage to nearly all low-income adults.

Liz Williams, senior policy analyst with KFF, explained if the federal match rate drops, Virginia would have two options: Come up with money to keep the Medicaid expansion or end it altogether.

"The state is required to automatically end expansion coverage if the match rate drops," Williams explained. "In those 'trigger law' states -- there's 12 of them -- enrollees are at greater risk of losing coverage."

Virginia is among those "trigger law" states. At the moment, 45% of Medicaid enrollees in the Commonwealth have health care coverage because of the Medicaid expansion and would be at risk of losing it should these changes go through.

The Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act was enacted to reduce the number of uninsured people nationwide. It provided states with an increased federal match rate to help pay for their health care costs. Williams emphasized if federal support drops and states cannot afford to pick up the added cost, the number of uninsured people will dramatically increase and any gains in financial security and health outcomes associated with the expansion would be reversed.

"Medicaid is jointly funded by states and the federal government," Williams noted. "Any restrictions in federal Medicaid spending really leaves states with tough choices about how to offset reductions."

She added states have a few options, including increasing state taxes, decreasing spending on non-Medicaid services like education or decreasing health coverage for other groups.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
In 2023, nearly 18% of U.S. households with children faced food insecurity, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

By Lauren Cohen / Broadcast version by Farah Siddiqi reporting for the Kent State NewsLab-Ohio News Connection Collaboration. S.B. 109, a bill that …


Social Issues

play sound

An Illinois law professor is weighing in on what she called a "very public and open test of due process" for immigrants being deported from the United…

Health and Wellness

play sound

New data show a 27% increase in rape kit testing across Mississippi since the state implemented a 2023 law requiring all new sexual assault evidence t…


Families in Colorado and across the nation spend up to 60% of their income on child care, the equivalent of a second mortgage or rent payment. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

The lack of quality child care for infants and toddlers costs Colorado nearly $3 billion each year in lost earnings, productivity and revenue but an …

Environment

play sound

By Seth Millstein for Sentient.Broadcast version by Danielle Smith for Tennessee News Service reporting for the Sentient-Public News Service Collabora…

Mexican Agriculture Minister Julio Berdegue said 90% of the tomatoes exported by Mexico go to the United States. (Pixabay)

Environment

play sound

The Florida tomato industry is stepping into uncharted territory following the termination of a decades old trade agreement with Mexico, marking what …

Environment

play sound

When consumers buy a meat product, they might like the idea it came from a local farm or ranch. But experts say there are still logjams in regional …

Environment

play sound

The unmistakable smell of hamburgers or steak on outdoor grills will soon be making its way through Minnesota neighborhoods and with the weather warmi…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021