Medicaid changes to hit community centers first

Community health centers, which provided care to 271,000 patients statewide and almost 78,000 in Milwaukee last year, would be among the first to see the effects of the proposed changes to BadgerCare Plus and other state health programs. The changes – approved Thursday by the legislative committee that oversees the state budget – could result in an estimated 65,000 people dropping or losing their coverage, according the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. The federal government, which pays more than 60% of the cost of Medicaid programs such as BadgerCare Plus, also must approve the proposed changes. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 11/14)