California Officials Keep Up Push for Increase in Federal Health Funding
On Friday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and California legislative leaders sent letters pushing for more federal funding for health care programs for the state, the AP/New York Times reports.
In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Schwarzenegger and California leaders urged Congress to approve legislation that would repay states for past Medicare costs. The letter asserts that an administrative error has cost California about $700 million over 30 years.
Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders sent a similar letter to California's congressional delegation.
Separately, Schwarzenegger and state leaders also sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius urging a change to a Medicare formula under the 2003 prescription drug benefit that the state says would provide an additional $250 million in federal money. The state maintains that the current formula does not properly account for discounts the state has negotiated from drugmakers (AP/New York Times, 2/7). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.