U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan has introduced H.R. 949 which would amend Title XI of the Social Security Act to eliminate the general Medicaid funding limitations for U.S. territories.
The bill, which has 18 co-sponsors, has been referred to the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Currently, in territories such as the CNMI, Medicaid is partially federally funded and partially locally funded.
The federal government has provided the following allotment caps to CNMI Medicaid: $63.1 million in FY 2020; $62.325 million in FY 2021; and $64.01 million in FY 2022, according to a report from Medicaid.gov/.
As proposed by Sablan’s bill, the cap would be removed and the CNMI government would no longer allocate local funds for Medicaid or limit some of the services of patients under the Medicaid program.
In a statement to Variety, Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation Chief Executive Officer Esther Muna expressed support for Kilili’s bill.
“As long as there is a cap in [Medicaid] funding, the CNMI has to prioritize its use and decide which services can be covered,” she said.
Kilili’s bill would have a positive impact on the CNMI’s healthcare system and alleviate CHCC’s financial challenges, she added.
“There would be less burden on the CNMI to pay for healthcare services covered for the Medicaid-eligible,” she said.
Currently, she said, with the continuous capped funding, the burden on the CNMI and CHCC can be more significant when funding runs out.
Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan
