R.I. House acknowledges inaccurate numbers in RIte Care discussion

PROVIDENCE – Larry Berman, communications director for the R.I. House of Representatives, confirmed Friday that inaccurate numbers on eligibility requirements were presented during a public hearing held by the House Finance Committee.
A staff presentation attempted to portray Rhode Island as more generous than its neighbors, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Mark Reynolds, president and CEO of Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island, said that it was an inaccurate portrayal and provided information to Providence Business News showing that Rhode Island was, in fact, less generous than its neighbors in terms of eligibility. (see chart)
Based on the inaccurate numbers, the House Finance Committee discussed trimming eligibility requirements in Rhode Island to 133 percent from 175 percent of the federal poverty level for parents participating in RIte Care, which would result in eliminating about 6,600 parents.
“It is correct to say that we had an error in the reporting of Connecticut’s eligibility,” said Berman, noting that in Connecticut the requirement is 185 percent of the federal poverty level, not 150 percent, as stated in the staff report.
Also, Berman said the eligibility requirement for Massachusetts is actually 300 percent, not 133 percent of the federal poverty level, as claimed in the staff report.
However, Massachusetts may offer “a more limited benefit package” at the level above 133 percent, Berman added.
When first asked about the use of inaccurate numbers, David J. Burnett, associate director for Governmental and Public Affairs at the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, said on June 9 that the proposed cut in eligibility for RIte Care was not part of the governor’s budget.
“We don’t take a position on these things,” he said. “This is in the General Assembly’s hands now.”
However, the agency was involved in developing the numbers and potential strategies used in the staff report.
On Friday, Burnett provided Providence Business News with a 16-page document entitled “Health and Human Services Eligibility Fact Book” that he said was provided to the R.I. House of Representatives.
The fact book lays out specific, detailed comparisons of Medicaid benefits offered by Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The document also charted the “potential impact of changes in optional populations and services allowed under federal health care reform,” suggesting that the Rhode Island could request a hardship waiver and “reduce eligibility to 133 percent [of the federal poverty level] for 18 months” for parents in the RIte Care program, resulting in 6,643 parents losing coverage for that time period.
While the document acknowledges that the penalty for noncompliance with the federal health care reform may be loss of federal funds, U.S. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed and Rep. David N. Cicilline all said that they were surprised when asked about R.I. House Finance Committee plans to eliminate more than 6,600 parents from the RIte Care rolls.