Don’t return to state-run Medicaid

Capitalizing on the narrative that Managed Care spells doom, Fred Hubbell proposes Iowa return to the bureaucratic mess that was our old, state-run Medicaid system. This is a terrible idea.

How quickly we forget that under the old Medicaid system, extremely high-risk patients with chronic health conditions like asthma and diabetes were denied access to important programs and services. Hubbell wants us to return to that nightmare?

Democrats have decried Medicaid managed care since its implementation in 2016. Yet for all their lamenting, they neglected to submit a budget proposal that reflected the cost of changing back, let alone concrete recommendations.

Managed care opens doors to better treatment for hundreds of thousands of the most vulnerable Iowans. Medicaid patients can now access more than 80 value-added benefits, including pregnancy and prenatal care programs, preventive care options and more. Additionally, patients with serious chronic health concerns can now access a health care coordinator who will oversee their care. None of this happened under the previous system.

Hubbell's proposal to 'fix” everything will only undo the progress that's been made since managed care began. I hope Iowans know better than to fall for these attempts to distract from the work that Gov. Kim Reynolds is doing to put Medicaid managed care on the right path.

Aletha Cole

Cedar Rapids