RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s Medicaid program won’t shift over to managed-care benefits as scheduled early next year, marking the largest casualty to date from the months-long budget stalemate between Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and Republican lawmakers.
Tuesday’s suspension of the managed-care initiative by the Department of Health and Human Services was expected. Legislators and the Cooper administration hadn’t been able to reach an agreement on final spending and program changes needed to get managed care off the ground on Feb. 1.
DHHS Secretary Mandy Cohen had said a deal was needed by mid-November. Legislators adjourned for the year last week.
Cooper has vetoed two bills containing the necessary managed-care language. He wants an expansion of Medicaid to hundreds of thousands of low-income adults to be considered along with managed care.