Hundreds on Medicaid waiting list in Illinois die while waiting for care

Looks like Illinois is having a problem with their "waiting lists" for specific Medicaid services apparently not covered with their Medicaid Obama.Care expansion.

I know Illinois is using private insurance companies for some (if not all) Medicaid.

I'm not sure what these waiting lists are.

Can somebody explain?

Also, Illinois seems to be way over projection spending too (not surprised at that).

Are other States having similar issues that aren't focused in the MSM?

Hundreds on Medicaid waiting list in Illinois die while waiting for care

The Illinois General Assembly opted to expand Medicaid through Obamacare in May 2013. This expansion created a new Medicaid category for able-bodied adults ages 19-64 with incomes below 138 percent of the federal poverty level.

But the Medicaid program was designed to serve the truly vulnerable – the aged, the blind and the disabled – and expansion critics have long warned that creating a new welfare class would prioritize able-bodied adults and put more vulnerable people at risk by redirecting limited resources. Now, newly obtained data from the Illinois Department of Human Services, or DHS, confirm these fears.

According to documents provided by the department, 752 Illinoisans on the state’s Medicaid waiting list have died awaiting needed care since the General Assembly voted to accept the Obamacare expansion for able-bodied adults. That’s 18 deaths each month, on average, since the expansion was authorized.

a reply to: xuenchen

I live here, in Illinois. Let me tell you, it's a sh*t hole.

a reply to: xuenchen

According to documents provided by the department, 752 Illinoisans on the state’s Medicaid waiting list have died awaiting needed care

I can attest from personal experience. When you are poor there is no 'treatment' valuable.

Only people with money actually get 'treatment'. The rest get emergency help only, more like triage, a handful of pain meds and or antibiotics.

Maybe it's time to segregate off the cities into city-states again.

a reply to: xuenchen

Three thoughts:

1 -- Death panels

2 -- Another example of why "insurance" is a misnomer for our healthcare system and why "insurance" will never work.

3 -- Wouldn't surprise me in the least to find out we spend more on middle-men and administrators of all the various healthcare agencies and plans than we actually spend on real healthcare.

a reply to: intrptr

Why you expect doctors to work for free or others people to work for those who can't provide for themselves? At least twice society has told these people and you that they aren't worth our time / money. So society doesn't deem them worthy of a job in which they can afford their own healthcare AND society including doctors nurses deemed them not worthy enough to provide medical services. It's tough pill to swallow but maybe you're not special?

a reply to: intrptr

Only people with money actually get 'treatment'. The rest get emergency help only, more like triage, a handful of pain meds and or antibiotics.

That isn't true.

In 1986, Congress enacted the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) to ensure public access to emergency services regardless of ability to pay.

www.cms.gov...

a reply to: xuenchen

Wait a minute, isn't Medicaid a temporary fix when somebody can not afford medical care and neither a regular insurance?

The reason for Medicaid was just to be use in emergency and never for longer term care and pre existing conditions

a reply to: neo96

Big difference between treatment to heal some disease or condition and "emergency services".

The article states hundreds of people died waiting for treatments they never received. Thats not emergency services, thats more like cancer treatment, surgeries, whatever.

If you come into emergency with blood spurting they will save you, if you have a broken bone they will set it. if you're sick with some flu they'll give you antibiotics.

The kind of treatments people die on waiting lists for are different.

a reply to: intrptr

That's what Medicaid is for, not for long term medical conditions and it was primarily to help families with young children.

originally posted by: marg6043
a reply to: intrptr

That's what Medicaid is for, not for long term medical conditions and it was primarily to help families with young children.

Oy yah, if its 'for the children'. Gotta keep up appearances.

I don't care about everybody's special grandpa story, whatever the laws say and hippocratic oath. When you got no money they give you bandaids, antibiotics and pain pills, then ... see ya.

I used to escort groups people to the emergency walk in at a large city hospital, I know what time it is.

www.medicare.gov...

Educating myself first.

originally posted by: wdkirk
www.medicare.gov...

Educating myself first.

I think medicare is for people over 65. Medicaid is for everyone else?

a reply to: intrptr

Well that is why we got Obamacrap for, right? I am right, to take care of people that can not afford medical insurance? right, you know all the children too.

Okay, so, after reading the article, the problem is more ABLE bodied people have signed up for Medicaid than what was projected due to changes in the state program that allowed them to do this. All brought to you by the Illinois general assembly who were warned about this being the problem.

Awesome. Lawmakers acted on bad info, didn't listen to good info and now the truly needy will feel the pain of their bad decision making skills.

Look at the link embedded in the article and you will see that several states will start having this same problem. The link is the "....650,000 able bodied adults" sentence.

originally posted by: intrptr

originally posted by: wdkirk
www.medicare.gov...

Educating myself first.

I think medicare is for people over 65. Medicaid is for everyone else?

read the article....it covers both.

Title of 1st paragraph....Medicaid

It sounds like a bunch of people were added by Obamacare, and there aren't enough doctors to see everyone in a timely manner. To be fair you would have to compare how many people died before the expansion from lack of treatment and see which number is bigger.

They said that 40,000 people a year were dying in the US from lack of healthcare before Obamacare, by the way, so I would guess that more people died before in Illinois.

Maybe it is a state thing. In my state it seems as though people who have Medicaid get better treatment than those otherwise insured. Of course, I've always thought it was the hospitals and doctors trying to rip off Medicaid because they know the money is a sure thing.

a reply to: intrptr

Medicare is for persons receiving Social Security Benefits, whether old age, survivors or disabled.

Medicaid is for the financially impoverished - children, elderly, disabled, retired, welfare recipients, etc.

If you're on Social Security, you might be on Medicaid as well as Medicare, depending on the amount of your monthly check. I have Medicare as a SS recipient - but my monthly benefit check is way too much to qualify for Medicaid.

As far as I know, legislatively Medicaid is a means-test qualified program that doesn't have any specific provisions for long term or chronic medical conditions different than emergency or life saving treatments.

ganjoa

a reply to: ganjoa

Medicare is for persons receiving Social Security Benefits, whether old age, survivors or disabled.

Medicaid is for the financially impoverished - children, elderly, disabled, retired, welfare recipients, etc.

Thanks for the distinction.