You Get What You (Don't) Pay For

The Journal Sentinel is reporting this morning on the planned start of BadgerCare Plus, which will provide health coverage access to every kid and many parents in the state beginning in February of next year.

According to the article:

The state expects to pay for the expansion primarily from streamlining state programs; expanding the use of health maintenance organizations; and the premiums and co-pays paid by families.

I hate to be the contrarian -- after all, ensuring every kid and most parents in the state have access to health coverage is a really good thing -- but the total expense of the program isn't included in the direct cost.

To be sure, estimates are that by 2009 the BadgerCare Plus program will cover 12,700 more children and 13,400 more adults* than under the existing BadgerCare system. A positive development, yes, but also one that means 26,100 more people* will be contributing to low reimbursement levels that result in significant cost shifting to private payers in the system.

If only there was a corresponding plan to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates...oh, right, that one had the mistake of including the word "tax" in it, so it just must be bad.

* The adult estimate was made prior to dropping childless adults from the original proposal, so the figure may be a bit inflated.