Governor Don Carcieri

As states slash Medicaid spending from their budgets and await an imminent federal bail out, Rhode Island’s governor has come under heavy criticism for seeking to overhaul the state’s Medicaid system through a spending cap.

Last summer, Gov. Don Carcieri applied for federal permission from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to change the state’s program and set a limit on spending. The waiver was approved earlier this month. According to the Boston Globe (“Congressional Democrats fault RI Medicaid plan“), Carcieri reached a deal during the final days of the Bush administration that would set a $12 billion cap on Medicaid spending over five years. Rhode Island is the only state to have taken this action. Read the full story