State DPW Concludes Hearings on Medicaid Overhaul Proposal

About 40 members of the public spoke out at the seventh and final hearing on the Corbett's administration's Medicaid overhaul plan Thursday in Harrisburg.
     
State Rep. Gene DiGirolamo was among them.
     
The Bucks County Republican said the state should accept federal Medicaid expansion dollars now while it continues to negotiate an alternative plan with the federal government.
    
But Department of Public Welfare Secretary Bev Mackereth suggested it's not a financially viable option without the reforms they're proposing.
     
She's spearheading the governor's "Healthy PA" plan, which would alter Medicaid benefits packages and impose controversial new cost-sharing and work-search requirements.
     
Mackereth said her agency will take all public comment into consideration while amending the plan, before submitting a final waiver to the Department of Health and Human Services.