Medicaid embraces victims

Immediate medical assistance for the victims of Hurricane Katrina could be followed by a push to take care of affected people well into the future.

Medicaid, a state and federal program, is one program that already has provided significant medical help to affected areas.

Some requirements of the program have been relaxed so displaced people can take advantage of health care services, said Christina Stephens, public information officer for the Louisiana department of health and hospitals.

Temporary coverage can be given to individuals without the standard amount of paperwork, Stephens said.

"They can make a self-declaration of disability," she said, adding that the coverage would last for five months. "At the end of the five months we'll look at their eligibility."

Although proof of eligibility has been relaxed, the qualifications for receiving Medicaid are the same as before the storm, Stephens said.

Before Hurricane Katrina, there were one-million people on Medicaid in Louisiana, she said. This population included children younger than 19, pregnant women, low-income parents, individuals 65 or older and the disabled.

Those who do not fall into these categories are unable to receive Medicaid help, Stephens said.

She said Congress must decide whether Medicaid can expand its coverage to include more of the population devastated by the hurricane. "Nothing formal can be done for them right now," she said.

Francis Rullan, public relations officer for the Mississippi division of Medicaid, said Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi all have petitioned the federal government for waivers that would reduce the state's burden of providing prescription drug benefits to hurricane victims.

Without insurance, Medicaid or Medicare coverage, some people will have to rely on charity, Stephens said.

"They'll have to rely on the safety nets in place before the hurricane," she said.

Alan Taylor, a spokesman for Charlotte-based Carolinas Medical Center's mobile hospital, which is offering free medical treatment to hurricane victims, said physicians are treating more than hurricane-related injuries.

"You also see general medical conditions," he said.

Common illnesses such as high blood pressure or diabetes are treated in the free clinics, but a program for the long-term treatment of these diseases is not yet in place.

But he said he is certain a program will be in place soon. "They'll be taken care of, that's for sure."

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said there would be support for victims in the future in the areas of medicine, shelter and jobs.

"The system will support them whether they stay in the relocated area or go back to where they came from," he said.

 

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.