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| Bill to allow prisoners to access Medicaid, saving on health care budget |
| By stateofreform.com- JJ Lee |
| Published: 01/29/2015 |
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Inmates in Washington state may have access to Medicaid coverage while incarcerated if Senate Bill 5593 passes this legislative session. The Bill seeks to determine prisoner Medicaid eligibility upon booking and gives correctional facilities the authority to enroll prisoners in health care coverage on their behalf while seeking inmate treatment at local hospitals. The measure could cut millions from county and state prisoner health care budgets. With Medicaid expansion, greater than 90 percent of prisoners could be eligible for Medicaid benefits. According to the Washington state Department of Corrections (DOC), Washington’s prisoner population tops 18,000. This population has a statistically high rate of chemical dependency and mental illness which is costly to treat. While services provided within correctional facilities are precluded from Medicaid coverage, legislators have discovered a loophole. An inmate may receive care at nearby hospitals and, if determined eligible, be covered for those services by Medicaid. Read More. |
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