By Lindsay Street, Statehouse correspondent | Up to 25,000 people could lose their Medicaid benefits in South Carolina if they don’t find employment, training or volunteer opportunities.
The Trump administration this week authorized South Carolina to become the first state that has not expanded Medicaid to require “community engagement” for beneficiaries. The plan, pushed by GOP Gov. Henry McMaster, has been in the works since January 2018.
According to the new requirements, selected beneficiaries would have to document 80 hours of employment or volunteering monthly, or be enrolled in an education or training program.
An analysis provided by the state’s Medicaid agency shows the new requirements would affect about 6,000 able-bodied adults currently receiving benefits — although the number could be as high as 25,000.
The S.C. Department of Health and Human Services estimated that of the 83,461 beneficiaries potentially affected, 60 percent are currently employed, 6 percent are engaged in qualifying educational or community service activity, and 4 percent would have a qualifying excuse not to work. That leaves 30 percent or about 25,000 people who would need to find work, volunteering or training to maintain their health insurance access.
Some of the national coverage the state has received as a result of Thursday’s announcement:
- S.C. decision signals Trump administration’s reshaping of largest public insurance program via The Washington Post.
- South Carolina becomes first state without expanded Medicaid to receive work waiver via The New York Times.
In other S.C. news:
Fewer retirements mean fewer teachers left classrooms in S.C., study says. Nine percent fewer teachers left the classroom in 2018-2019 compared the previous year, according to a new report from the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement. The report found that 6,650 full-time S.C. teachers left their positions during or at the end of the 2018-19 school year. The report also said the school year saw “significantly fewer” retirements, helping to explain the decrease in those leaving the classroom. Read the full report here.
Senate, House prefile 162 bills. Members of the Senate and House pre-filed a total of 162 bills Wednesday on Dec. 11e. See the 91 pre-filed bills in the Senate here. See the 71 pre-filed bills in the House here. The second year of a two-year session begins Jan. 14.
Many of state’s uninsured could access ‘free’ plans. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 40 percent of the state’s uninsured population, or 166,000 people, could qualify for the federally-subsidized bronze plans that have $0 monthly premiums. The bronze plans have high deductibles — the average is $6,506 — but health experts say that is less than the cost of hospitalization without insurance. Read the report.
S.C. Historical Marker Program releases new digital guidebook. The digital S.C. Historical Markers guidebook for Winter 2019 was released this week. The guidebook includes a list of all markers approved by the S.C. Historical Marker Program, organized by county and order of approval. See the guidebook here.
Natural gas prices saved S.C. consumers $6.4B, group says. Fossil-fuel friendly nonprofit Consumer Energy Alliance is touting customer savings due to the low price of natural gas. In a new report, the nonprofit says South Carolinians saved $6.4 billion. Read the report.
States begin eyeing taxes to curb vaping. South Carolina isn’t the only state looking to curb use of electronic cigarettes among young adults. According to a recent report by Kaiser Health News, 20 states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation to tax vaping products. Read more about proposed regulations for South Carolina.
McMaster taps Upstate lawmaker to lead veterans agency. Gov. Henry McMaster named freshman Greenville Republican Rep. Bobby Cox as his choice to lead the state’s new Department of Veterans’ Affairs. The nomination is subject to confirmation by the Senate. Cox was elected in 2018, and previously served four tours in Iraq as an Army Ranger. He is a graduate of The Citadel. Read more.
2020 candidate calendar
Throughout the campaign season, we are working to keep South Carolina informed of candidate events in the state. Have an event you want us to know about? Email us at 2020news@statehousereport.com.
Gabbard swings through S.C. this weekend. Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is in South Carolina through Dec. 15. Here are some of her stops:
- 1:15 p.m. Dec. 13 Orangeburg Business to Business in Orangeburg;
- 7 p.m. Dec. 13 Woman to Woman Talk with Tulsi at Conversespace in Columbia;
- 9:30 a.m. Dec. 14 S.C. Democratic Party Issues Conference at Greenville Convention Center in Greenville; and,
- 4 p.m. Dec. 15 town hall at Furman University in Greenville.
South Carolina Democratic debate announced for Feb. 25. Four days before the South Carolina Democratic Presidential Primary, the national committee and the Congressional Black Caucus will host a debate in Charleston. It will be the 10th Democratic debate among presidential hopefuls. Read more.
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