State Representative Jay Barnes, a young Catholic attorney who represents Jefferson City, is proposing a different kind of Medicaid bill that reforms the program and includes strong pro-life provisions. HB 700 will be voted on next week in the House Committee on Government Oversight and Accountability. Your state representative serves on this committee. Read this Alert and then contact your legislator and urge support for HB 700. 

HB 700 prohibits funding of abortions, except to save the life of the mother. The bill provides Medicaid health coverage for uninsured pregnant women and their unborn children. HB 700 also establishes a new program - the Show-Me Healthy Babies Program - that will offer health coverage when the traditional Medicaid program doesn't.

The Show-Me Healthy Babies Program will make sure quality prenatal care is available to women who are uninsured. The Show-Me Healthy Babies Program enlists the help of pregnancy resource centers and maternity homes to identify pregnant women who need prenatal care but cannot afford it.

Prenatal care ensures healthy outcomes for both mother and child. By getting into family doctors or obstetricians/ gynecologists early in their pregnancy, women learn more about the healthy lifestyle (good nutrition, no smoking or drinking of alcohol) that can lead to the delivery of a healthier baby. Also, prenatal care visits can lead to the discovery of conditions that can be treated by early intervention. 

HB 700 embodies two basic principles of Catholic teaching. Subsidiarity declares that things that can be done on a more personal, family or local level should be done on that level. This principle calls for self-responsibility and strong family ties. Solidarity recognizes that individuals and families often need help from others with more resources and that all of us are to act as Good Samaritans and reach out to the least among us.

In regards to the principle of subsidiarity, HB 700 asks people to become active participants in their own healthcare. No government program, including Medicaid, can be effective if people themselves refuse to take some responsibility for their own healthcare.

HB 700 requires people to purchase health coverage through their employer or through an insurance exchange whenever it is affordable. Premium subsidies are offered for lower-income individuals. There are also incentives to encourage people to access health services prudently rather than using emergency rooms for minor illnesses that are best addressed by a family doctor.

Regarding the principle of solidarity, HB 700 ensures health coverage is made available to some of our poorest citizens. At present, a mother with two children is normally not eligible for Medicaid health coverage if her annual income exceeds $4,584. HB 700 raises the eligibility level to the federal poverty line, or $19,530 annually for that mother with two children.

Most of the public is unaware of the financial crisis facing Missouri's smaller hospitals. Over the next several years, hospitals, including Catholic hospitals, will see major cuts in the federal funds they receive for providing uncompensated care to the indigent and uninsured.

Congress cut these funds under the assumption that expanded Medicaid would take up the slack; that is, more patients would be entering the hospital with Medicaid health coverage. But if Missouri refuses to expand Medicaid, those federal Medicaid dollars will not be available to reimburse hospitals. 

HB 700 represents the best hope for any movement on Medicaid reform this year. The federal government is offering significant new federal funds to cover individuals and families who are uninsured and living below the federal poverty line. However, if the general assembly does not act, Missouri, unlike many other states, will not receive these federal funds.