policy
Statement on the Confirmation of Seema Verma as CMS Administrator
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 13, 2017
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Jeff Van Ness, (202) 204-7515; jvanness@communityplans.net
STATEMENT OF ACAP CEO MARGARET A. MURRAY ON THE
CONFIRMATION OF SEEMA VERMA AS CMS ADMINISTRATOR
WASHINGTON – Margaret A. Murray, CEO of the Association for Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP), made the following statement regarding the recent confirmation of Seema Verma as Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS):
“We congratulate Ms. Verma on her confirmation, and look forward to working with her in the coming months and years.
“The Trump Administration has laid out an ambitious plan to bring change to the way that Medicaid is financed and administered. Ms. Verma’s experience in working to change the program in Indiana will serve her well in carrying out this priority.
“Flexibility is one of the great things about the Medicaid program today—this very flexibility is what has allowed the changes Ms. Verma helped to effect in Indiana. We look forward to working with Ms. Verma on pathways to refine the program while maintaining its guarantee of coverage for all eligible individuals, improving transparency and actuarial soundness in rate-setting, and assuring access to needed care and services. It’s also critical that we get the most out of the flexibility offered by Medicaid through rigorous evaluation of what works, and what doesn’t – so that we can learn how programmatic changes affect access to and affordability of care, and incorporate the lessons learned.
“Flexibility has also brought about changes in Medicare, largely through the Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan program, which serve people dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, as well as the Financial Alignment Demonstrations, which seek to bring an integrated framework for the delivery of benefits and care for people who are dually eligible.
“We look forward to continued dialogue with CMS in our shared efforts to improve the health and well-being of our fellow Americans who rely on Medicare and Medicaid for health coverage.”
About ACAP
ACAP represents 59 nonprofit Safety Net Health Plans in 28 states, which collectively serve more than seventeen million people enrolled in Medicaid, Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Marketplaces and other publicly-supported health programs.
For more information, visit www.communityplans.net.
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