Gov. Josh Stein called on state lawmakers Monday to pass Medicaid funding and a budget bill this week. But the legislature isn't expected to take action on either issue.
Legislators returned to Raleigh this week to pass a new congressional map that will likely give Republicans an additional safe seat. But House and Senate Republicans haven't reached an agreement on any spending proposals.
The impasse includes both a full budget bill and separate legislation to fully fund the Medicaid program. The funding shortfall has forced the state Department of Health and Human Services to make cuts this month. Stein said legislative leaders shouldn't let other disagreements derail that funding.
"Both chambers agree that more funding is needed," Stein said. "Both chambers agree on the amount of funding that is needed, and yet they have yet to appropriate it. It is a shameful abdication of their responsibility. State law requires DHHS to maintain a balanced budget. The legislature's failure to appropriate adequate funding has forced the department to make painful choices."
Both the House and Senate passed Medicaid funding bills last month, but the Senate insisted on including funding for a new children's hospital in Apex — a project House leaders aren't fully supporting. Starting this month, the Medicaid program reduced reimbursement rates to healthcare providers, leading to fears that doctors and providers might decline to treat Medicaid patients at the lower rates, and the Medicaid program has eliminated coverage for new weight-loss drugs.
But Senate leader Phil Berger told reporters Monday that he doesn't think the cuts were immediately necessary given the existing funding lawmakers approved for Medicaid over the summer.
"What did the Stein administration do with that $600 million? The first $100 million went to administrative expenses," Berger said. "So it's fairly clear that their priority is not making sure providers get paid. Their priority is not making sure that individuals get medical care that gets paid for. Their priority is protecting the bureaucracy."
As for the broader budget stalemate, Berger stressed that state government in North Carolina continues to operate at previously approved spending levels, drawing a contrast with the federal government shutdown.
"It's a simple fact that we've not been able to reach an agreement on additional matters for the budget, and we continue to have conversations" with the House, Berger said. "If we can't get agreement on anything beyond what we have, then what we have is certainly adequate for the functioning of state government at this time."
Stein says North Carolina is one of only two states that haven't passed a full budget bill this year, and in the other state, the legislature is divided between the two political parties.
"They are failing the people of North Carolina by not having a budget that invests in our people and invests in our future," Stein said.
