State & Local Weekly News Wrap-Up

By Timothy Brett posted Mar 02,2012 09:15 AM

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MULTI-JURISDICTION

States are moving toward health care reform but not without significant challenges. Nearly every aspect of federal health care reform legislation has been politicized and yet federal deadlines loom large. Federal health care reform legislation created new and significant requirements for states to comply with leading many states to launch court challenges claiming overreach and unconstitutionality. They have had enough success that the Supreme Court is expected to issue a final ruling later this year. However, in the interim the deadlines remain and states – even those that aren’t opposed to the measure are running out of time. Vermont and New Jersey are the two latest states to take up debate on whether to institute state run health insurance exchanges. Health officials in New Jersey are applying for funds even as debate continues in the legislature in order to make sure they meet a fast approaching set of deadlines. The federal government is offering states funding assistance to set up their own exchanges. However, the application deadline for those funds is this year. States then only have until 2013 to use those funds and build the exchange. Funds that aren’t used by the 2013 deadline will be revoked and exchanges that aren’t online by the 2014 deadline will be federally administered. In Vermont, the legislature will take up debate over their exchange with the goal of implementing a statewide single payer health care system which local republicans actively oppose. They are expected to offer amendments making participation in the exchange voluntary rather than mandatory as required by federal law. States lurch toward health care reform

OHIO

Ohio is pushing forward on a ten-fold boost to its broadband network speeds. At a recent event that included Governor Kasich and researchers from Ohio State, University of Cincinnati, Summa Western Reserve Hospital and Case Western Reserve University, officials outlined the state’s plan to become a world leader in medical research.Ohio is launching the first ever state-led initiative to provide a statewide 100 Gigabits (Gbps) per second broadband network. The state wants to leverage its existing medical research and university network to bring companies and funding into the state in order to create jobs and grow the economy. Under a recently approved agreement with Cisco and Juniper, Ohio will invest approximately $10 million to lay over 1,800 miles of fiber, and increase its current 10 Gbps capacity to 100 Gbps. At this speed, every one of Ohio’s 1.8 million enrolled K-12 students could download an eBook simultaneously in just over two minutes. Ohio to expand medical corridor over new ultra-fast broadband network

WASHINGTON

Washington state’s health care system is facing dire cuts and is coming under fire from health care providers. State lawmakers are working to close a $1 billion budget shortfall and significant cuts to health services for low-income individuals have been proposed leading to an outcry from providers. The American College of Emergency Physicians issued a recent press release saying that proposed cuts to Medicaid in the state will significantly endanger patients in need of emergency care. According to the physicians, more than 18,000 emergency patients sick enough to need hospitalization would have been denied coverage of emergency care had they been Medicaid patients living in Washington State. The Washington State plan also is in violation of the federal “prudent layperson standard,” because it refuses to pay for diagnoses that it considers non-urgent. Washington state faces tough decisions on health care funding

WEST VIRGINIA

Kyle Schafer, West Virginia's chief technology officer, is leaving for a position outside of state government, according to a message he sent to friends Friday via LinkedIn."My last day at the state will be March 2nd," Schafer said in the message. Schafer was appointed to lead the state's technology efforts in 2005 by then-Gov. Joe Manchin. His appointment came just after the Office of Technology was moved from the Governor's Office to the Department of Administration. W.Va. state government's chief technology officer resigns

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