Missouri weighs Medicaid overhaul as spending climbs

Medicaid spending in Missouri accounted for 17 percent of the state's revenue in 2009. In 2018, the state's Medicaid spending grew to 24 percent, and it's on track to equal 26 percent of revenue by 2023 if left untouched, according to the News Tribune.

Last year, Missouri's Republican Gov. Mike Parson selected Todd Richardson, the state's former House Speaker, to lead the MO HealthNet Medicaid program. Mr. Richardson is tasked with containing the program's costs and improving its sustainability.

Missouri attempted to overhaul its Medicaid program in 2006, but the plan ultimately fell short of its intended goals, according to the News Tribune. Under a new system, Mr. Richardson is considering what type of model would best suit Missouri's 900,000 Medicaid recipients.

"I think we certainly have to move toward value-based care. I'm not sure that's mutually exclusive with managed care," Mr. Richardson told the News Tribune. "Where we have to focus as a state, where we lag behind other payers and where we certainly lag behind some other states is in the use of value-based payment models."

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