Education Coalition Letter in Support of Medicaid Provision in S-CHIP: September 21, 2007
September 21, 2007
Dear Member of Congress:
We, the undersigned members of education, health, civil rights, and other organizations, are writing to urge you to take action to prohibit the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) from implementing proposed rules that will make it more difficult for schools and early childhood providers to provide medical assistance for Medicaid eligible school children.
Under current regulations, states, school districts, and early childhood providers that provide health care services in schools for Medicaid-enrolled children with disabilities can be reimbursed by Medicaid for transportation and administrative claiming. For some time, CMS has threatened to eliminate reimbursements for the transportation and administrative claims. The elimination of these reimbursements would inevitably shift the financial responsibility for transportation and administrative claims to individual school districts and early childhood providers across the nation. The Administration estimates that the elimination of these reimbursements to schools will create $635 million in savings during the first year and $3.6 billion in savings over the first 5 years. However, there is no corresponding increase in funding for the federal special education law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), that would enable schools and early childhood providers to make up for the reduction in Medicaid reimbursements for transportation and administrative claims provided to children with disabilities.
On September 7, CMS issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) that would eliminate critical Medicaid reimbursements for school transportation and administrative activities. The proposed regulations would eliminate federal Medicaid payments for administrative activities performed by school employees or contractors, or anyone under the control of a public or private educational institution. The rule also proposes to eliminate Medicaid reimbursements for specialized transportation from home to school and back for school-aged children with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or an Individualized Family Services Plan (IFSP) under IDEA.
We are strongly opposed to the CMS proposal that would eliminate administrative and transportation claiming. If these proposed rules are allowed to stand, states, local school districts, and early childhood providers will have to pay for these much needed services out of their own pockets. For this reason, we are urging you to support the provision in the House version of the State Children’s Health Improvement Program (SCHIP) reauthorization bill, known in the House as CHAMP, when the House and Senate go to conference on this important legislation. Section 814 of H.R. 3162, the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act of 2007, which would provide for a one-year moratorium on the promulgation of regulations to eliminate Medicaid reimbursements to schools for administrative and transportation costs when the House and Senate go to conference on SCHIP reauthorization legislation. The Senate version of SCHIP reauthorization legislation does not contain the one-year moratorium on the CMS proposed rules.
Thank you for your consideration of our request that you include the House moratorium on the proposed CMS rules during House-Senate conference consideration of SCHIP reauthorization. We look forward to your response to our request. Schools and early childhood providers across the country cannot afford to pay an additional $3.6 billion over 5 years.
Signed,
American Association of School Administrators
American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
American Counseling Association
American Federation of School Administrators
American Federation of Teachers
American Occupational Therapy Association
American School Health Association
Association for Career and Technical Education
Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs
Association of Educational Service Agencies
Association of School Business Officials International
Association of University Centers on Disabilities
California County Superintendents Educational Services Association
California Department of Education
California School Employees Association
Connecticut Federation of School Administrators
Council for Exceptional Children
Council for Opportunity in Education
Council of Administrators of Special Education of the Council for Exceptional Children
Council of Chief State School Officers
Council of the Great City Schools
Division for Learning Disabilities
Easter Seals
Fed Ed
Higher Education Consortium for Special Education
Learning Disabilities Association of America
National Assembly on School-Based Health Care
National Association for the Education of Young Children
National Association of Federally Impacted Schools
National Association of Private Special Education Centers
National Association of Pupil Services Administrators
National Association of School Psychologists
National Association of Secondary School Principals
National Association of State Directors of Special Education
National Center for Learning Disabilities
National Down Syndrome Congress
National Down Syndrome Society
National Education Association
National PTA
National Rural Education Advocacy Coalition
National School Boards Association
Northern Suburban Special Education District
School Social Work Association of America
Society of State Directors of Health, Physical Education and Recreation
TASH
Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children
The Arc of the United States
United Cerebral Palsy
United Spinal Association