Kasich plan would shift more Medicaid enrollees into managed care plans

Under Gov. John Kasich’s budget plan, more Ohioans who are among the sickest and require the costliest care would begin being being enrolled in managed care plans (Source: “Medicaid Reform: New plan starts with ill children,” Columbus Dispatch, May 29, 2011).

Administration officials say the transition is expected to begin next year with more than 37,000 disabled children being enrolled in managed care plans, with similar changes planned later for the mentally ill, nursing-home residents, those receiving home- and community-based services and dual eligibles, the poor elderly who are served both by Medicaid and Medicare.

However, the transition to managed care could take years, and in some cases, may not happen at all. The move to managed care is part of an broader effort to ensure that Ohio Medicaid enrollees receive more coordinated care, officials say.

"We want a point of coordination, but not necessarily managed care," said Greg Moody, director of the governor's Office of Health Transformation. "To me, it's good old-fashioned market competition. It could be managed-care companies. It could be a skilled nursing facility."

To learn more about the Ohio Medicaid program, please view HPIO’s Ohio Medicaid Basics 2011 (pdf, 16 pages).