Lawmakers in North Carolina are taking aim at the state treasurer's proposal to shift the state's health plan to a payment model that reimburses providers based on a percentage above what Medicare pays, according to local news station WRAL.
Three things to know:
1. Legislators filed House Bill 184 Feb. 26, which would block North Carolina Treasurer Dale Folwell's plan. Under the bill, legislators would create a study group to analyze the issue during the next year. In addition, Mr. Folwell's plan would be pushed back until at least 2022.
2. Mr. Folwell has argued the change would save the state's health plan, which covers more than 720,000 employees, about $300 million a year, according to WRAL. He intends to shift from having Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, the plan's administrator, negotiate rates in private, and instead pay set amounts for services at an average of 177 percent of Medicare.
3. Hospitals and providers have balked at the proposition. The North Carolina Healthcare Association said such a change could create a domino effect in which private insurers push for locked-in rates as well, according to the report.
View House Bill 184 here.
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