Collection:LPB

Genre: Newsmagazine

Copyright Holder: Louisiana Educational Television Authority

Date Issued: 2009-08-07

Duration: 00:05:43

Subjects: Levine, Alan | Louisiana. Department of Health and Hospitals | Health Care | MEDICAID | Hospitals | State Budget Cuts | STATE BUDGET | Economic stimulus

Contributors:

• Whinham, Charlie Host
• Sanford, Shauna Host
• Sanford, Shauna Producer
• Bush, Charles Photographer
• Bush, Charles Editor
• Levine, Alan Interviewee

This segment from the August 7, 2009, episode of the series “Louisiana: The State We’re In” features Shauna Sanford’s interview with Secretary Alan Levine of the Department of Health and Hospitals on the department’s impending $240 million budget cut. Levine discusses: budget cuts to the Medicaid program; the decision to not cut physician services to children 16 years and younger; hospitals and physicians feeling the budget cuts; trying to limit the impact of the cuts on patients; the need to discourage visits to the emergency room for non-emergency conditions; the impending decrease in federal money from both matching funds for Medicaid and the economic stimulus package, which will result in a loss of $1 billion; needing to change policies so that higher education and health care are not fighting for money in the state budget; his concerns over the health care reform bill before Congress; and the importance of giving consumers the power of choice in making their health care decisions instead of having government dictate their choices. Hosts: Charlie Whinham and Shauna Sanford