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PNS - Friday, February 14, 2025 - Trump administration begins sweeping layoffs with probationary workers, warns of larger cuts to come; NYC music school teachers strike after union negotiations break down; Ohio advocates push for inclusive policies during Black History Month; Health experts recommend sunshine, socializing to cure 'winter blues.'
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By Kathleen Shannon - Producer, Contact - News
Big Sky Connection - A January report from the Georgetown Center for Children and Families shows that cuts to Medicaid would disproportionately impact rural communities and especially ones with high populations of Native people, including in Montana. This comes as the state Legislature considers bills to end or extend Medicaid expansion. Comments by Joan Alker, executive director, Georgetown University Center for Children and Families and research professor, Georgetown McCourt School of Public Policy; and Jason Smith, executive director, Montana Consortium for Urban Indian Health.
Click on the image above for the audio. Montana ranks ninth in the country for the ratio of non-elderly adults in rural areas that rely on Medicaid coverage, at 22.2%, according to a January report from the Georgetown Center for Children and Families. (Adobe Stock)
Kathleen Shannon
February 13, 2025 - A January report shows that in rural counties home to large numbers of American Indians, including in Montana, people are more likely to rely on Medicaid for health insurance across all age groups. About 23% of Montanans rely on Medicaid for their health coverage. But the four counties with the highest rates - roughly 40%- are all home to American Indian reservations. That's according to a report from the Georgetown Center for Children and Families on Medicaid's role in rural areas.
Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown Center for Children and Families, says that's a national pattern.
"This is important because if Congress moves ahead to make large cuts, these areas and Indian Country more generally will be in big trouble," she explained.
Alker added that documents leaked from the House Budget Committee show it's considering cuts to Medicaid between $200 -billion and $2.3 trillion. She added that the cuts are not a "foregone conclusion." This week, a Montana bill to start phasing out the state's Medicaid expansion was voted down by the Senate on Tuesday and a bill to remove the program's June sunset date passed the House on Monday.
Jason Smith, executive director of the Montana Consortium for Urban Indian Health, said Medicaid provides health coverage for individuals while being a critical source of revenue to the Urban Indian Organizations to help sustain their operations.
"I would say the UIOs, particularly, had a lot of revenue coming from Medicaid. So it's really a great secondary source of funding that has helped their organizations run and provide services for the communities," he contended.
As of January, more than 14,000 American Indians in Montana were enrolled in Medicaid expansion.
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PNS - Thursday, February 13, 2025 - Rural America struggles with opioids and homelessness in unexpected ways, Colorado's Lariat Ditch could help spur local recreation, and book deliveries revive rural communities hit by Hurricane Helene.
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PNS - Thursday, February 13, 2025 - Deregulation raises environmental and public health concerns, national monuments face potential risks, political neutrality in education sparks protests, and Tulsi Gabbard's confirmation fuels controversy.
