MaineCare expansion is vital for more than 70,000 Mainers, keeping them healthy and productive. It is also crucial to the 65 locations in Maine where community health centers, such as the B Street Health Center in Lewiston, provide care to more than 200,000 Mainers, regardless of their ability to pay. In 2011, Maine community health […]
MaineCare
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage administration continues campaign against Medicaid expansion
Agriculture Commissioner Walter Whitcomb said the state’s natural resource agencies — Agriculture, Conservation, Marine Resources, Environmental Protection, and Inland Fisheries and Wildlife — had lost $13 million in state funding in just five years, a reduction he attributes to regular annual shortfalls in the the Department of Health and Human Services, which administers MaineCare. “We […]
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Posted inLetters
C. Saddlemire: Poorest Mainers being left out
Obamacare has made it possible for millions of Americans to have the affordable health insurance they deserve, and I’m one of them. During the past two years, while serving on City Council and attending graduate school, I earned very little income and found the most affordable way to maintain some health insurance coverage was a […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Lewiston superintendent: Tough budget ahead
LEWISTON — School Superintendent Bill Webster told Lewiston School Committee members to brace themselves for difficult budget decisions when he released the proposed 2014-15 budget next week. Reasons for possible cuts in positions, programs and/or higher property taxes include expected flat funding in education dollars from the state, higher MaineCare costs and no leftover cash […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
MaineCare adults could get limited dental care
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine lawmakers are considering a bill that for the first time would provide emergency dental care for adults who receive Medicaid benefits. The proposal is designed to reduce uncompensated emergency room treatment for dental pain. Currently, children are covered for dental care but not adults. About 25 states provide at least some […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Lawmakers say online MaineCare application is too intrusive
AUGUSTA — Some Maine lawmakers say questions for single parents on the state’s online application for Medicaid are too intrusive and should be eliminated. Single parents applying for MaineCare coverage are being asked personal questions, including where their child was conceived and the reason the other parent is absent. Democratic state Rep. Richard Farnsworth of […]
Posted inLetters
R. Reed: Focus on solutions
This past week it was announced that Democrats in the Maine Legislature will try to stop payment to the Alexander Group for the Medicaid report. Part One has been presented and resulted in political posturing by those who seek to keep the status quo. The main argument against the numbers presented was they were far […]
Posted inOp-Eds
April Nichols: Maine’s nursing homes being shortchanged
Since the beginning of the economic decline in 2007, the public conversation in Maine has focused on keeping and creating jobs. Policymakers have identified employment as one of the greatest motivators for economic stability, and significant efforts have been made to stimulate hiring. Unfortunately, pursuit of this priority has become endangered in Maine by significant […]
Posted inLetters
P. Hoffman and J. Cogan: Do what is right and decent
“One cannot pick oneself up by the bootstraps when bedridden by a chronic but treatable illness.” — Marguerite Pennoyer, MD, Sun Journal column, Jan. 24. The preamble to the U.S. Constitution emphasizes the importance of “promoting the general welfare,” to preserve our freedoms and prosperity as a whole society. “Welfare” today is given a negative […]
Posted inLetters
M. Larson: Keep Maine’s workforce healthy
The LePage administration has stated that the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare will cost the state millions of dollars, yet I hear little about the costs of refusing the millions of dollars from the federal government that pay for the expansion. Each of us fortunate enough to have insurance pays an estimated $1,000 per year to […]