MADISON (WSAU) If you’re on the state government’s bare-bones health plan, you better pay your premiums on time – or you’ll be cut off immediately with no chance to re-enroll.
Senate Democrat Jim Holperin of Conover says recipients of Badger-Care-Plus-Basic have complained they were kicked out, even though they were just a couple days late on their payments. Holperin tells the Wisconsin Radio Network that people have asked him for help, but he couldn’t do anything.
State health services’ spokeswoman Beth Kaplan said the cut-off policy was necessary because the program’s in a financial bind. It stopped taking new people in March because expenses had exceeded revenues from premiums. Democrats created the Basic plan last year for low-income childless adults who were on a waiting list for the more extensive Badger-Care Plus. Its supporters promised that recipients would pay the entire cost, with the help of a federal grant – and state taxpayers would not have to shell out a dime. But in May of this year, the Legislative Audit Bureau said the plan racked up a $140,000 deficit in its first six months. In March, the Walker administration cut off enrollment at 5,700 – and they raised the monthly premiums to $200. But the audit said the higher fee was still not enough to cover all the costs. Kaplan said the deficit rose to nearly $2-million. She said the health agency is now trying to decide whether Badger-Care-Plus-Basic can be sustainable.
