Possible budget shortfall has officials worried about Medicaid

As has been previously reported, Ohio Medicaid enrollment is higher than was projected last year (by last estimate, 26,000 cases higher than the November projections). With the state now facing a possible $1.9 billion shortfall over the next year and a half, officials in the Strickland administration are worried that these higher-than-anticipated Medicaid costs could compound the budget problem. (Source: "Cabinet told to look for ways to cut back," Columbus Dispatch, Jan. 24, 2008.)

Because of this increased enrollment, "The administration is projecting that the state will need to come up with an additional $207.3 million to cover its share of Medicaid. The souring economy already has prompted Strickland to delay $65 million in promised increases in Medicaid benefits for the state's poor and in payments to doctors and hospitals that treat them. In addition, the administration has pushed back until at least April a plan allowing middle-class families to buy in to the children's health-insurance program."