TITLE
RESOLUTION URGING THE U.S. CONGRESS AND/OR THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES TO AMEND FEDERAL LAW TO ALLOW FEDERAL FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION FOR MEDICAL BENEFITS TO INCARCERATED BUT UNADJUDICATED INDIVIDUALS; URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO SUSPEND RATHER THAN TERMINATE MEDICAID BENEFITS FOR PERSONS CHARGED WITH A CRIME AND/OR INCARCERATED FOR LESS THAN A YEAR

BODY
WHEREAS, the United States Code of Federal Regulations, Title 42, Part 435.1009 states that federal financial participation ("FFP") is not available in expenditures for services that are provided to individuals who are inmates of public institutions; and
WHEREAS, states, being unable to fiscally assume the federal share of providing medical services to FFP eligible persons being held in county jails and detention facilities, tend to terminate or sometimes suspend eligibility; and
WHEREAS, the immediate termination of benefits occurs before the issuance of formal charges or conviction; and
WHEREAS, counties must provide medical services to all persons incarcerated in local jails and detention facilities; and
WHEREAS, as the result of this regulation to immediately terminate FFP for medical benefits, all costs of medical care must be borne solely by counties; and
WHEREAS, in Florida, the state's current policy is to terminate Medicaid eligibility of any person that is charged with a crime and confined in jail, including any period of pre-trial confinement; and
WHEREAS, as a result of this policy, the previously-eligible Medicaid recipient must reapply to the Department for a determination of eligibility upon release from confinement; and
WHEREAS, this reapplication process takes anywhere from 60 to 120 days, during which time the individual will most likely access any needed medical care through county or public hospital emergency rooms and publicly-funded health clinics; and
WHEREAS, state legislatures in Minnesota and New York recently have passed legislation that suspend rather than terminate a person's Medicaid eligibility when they are charged with a crime and confined in a county jail for limited periods of time; and
WHEREAS, suspending rather than terminating Medicaid benefits allows these benefits to be reinstated quicker once a person is released, either after being found not guilty or serving a sentence of less than one year; and
WHEREAS, suspending rather than terminating Medicaid benefits reduces costs to counties and public hospitals,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Urges the U.S. Congress to amend federal laws and regulations to allow federal financial participation for medical benefits to incarcerated individuals until they are convicted and sentenced to secure detention.
Section 2. Urges the Florida Legislature to amend state law to suspend rather than terminate Medicaid benefits when a person is charged with a crime or serves a sentence of less than a year.
Section 3. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the members of the Miami-Dade County Congressional Delegation, the Florida Governor, Florida Senate President, Florida House Speaker, Chair and Members of the Miami-Dade State Legislative Delegation, and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Section 4. Directs the County's federal and state lobbyists to advocate for the passage of the legislation and/or rule change set forth in Sections 1 and 2 above, and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to include this item in the 2008 Federal and State Legislative Packages.