Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall have rejected efforts by Governor Josh Stein to call the General Assembly into an extra or special session. In a letter to the Governor, Senator Berger and Speaker Hall expressed their view that the General Assembly was already in session and that the Governor’s proclamation was an unconstitutional attempt to usurp the General Assembly’s authority to set its calendar.

They also questioned the Governor’s explanation that Medicaid reimbursement rates urgently need to be fixed. They noted, among other things, that the General Assembly recently appropriated an additional $600 million for Medicaid, saying, “Rather than using the full amount for services, you and the DHHS leadership chose to take nearly $100 million off the top for administrative expenses.”

Governor Stein quickly responded by saying, “They are forcing health care providers to make painful decisions to stop accepting Medicaid patients, cut salaries, reduce critical services, or close altogether. NCDHHS can’t put health care costs on a credit card. The longer the General Assembly refuses to fund our Medicaid program, the more they erode our health care system.”

Author: sdbrownlow

Student of Design