Medicaid

N.C. Department of Health and Human Services officials reiterated their request for $319 million in state funds for Medicaid during a legislative oversight committee meeting on Tuesday.

North Carolina lawmakers haven't passed a full budget bill since 2023, and Gov. Josh Stein says tight funding and stagnant salaries are pushing state government to the breaking point. He proposed a $1.4 billion stopgap budget plan Monday to address some of those issues.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Josh Stein is canceling Medicaid reimbursement rate reductions he initiated over two months ago, preserving in the short term access to care for vulnerable patients while a political fight with Republican legislators to enact additional funding gets resolved.

Speaker of the House Destin Hall and Senate Leader Phil Berger told Stein the special session is unconstitutional and unnecessary.

Gov. Josh Stein called on state lawmakers Monday to pass Medicaid funding and a budget bill this week. But the legislature isn't expected to take action on either issue.

Officials say a North Carolina government initiative is eliminating over $6.5 billion in medical debt for more than 2.5 million residents. The totals released Monday exceed initial expectations for the effort announced last year.

Reductions in provider reimbursements are set to take effect on Oct. 1, as Republicans in NC's House and Senate failed to reach agreement on a Medicaid funding bill.

North Carolina Medicaid patients face a threat of reduced access to services — before separate changes approved within President Donald Trump's spending-reduction law are implemented — as an impasse over state Medicaid funding extends further.

The state “minibudget” passed over the summer created a $319 million Medicaid shortfall. To make up the difference, North Carolina health leaders plan to reduce reimbursements by 3 percent in October.

Dozens of people marched through the downtown area carrying signs, tombstones and decorative umbrellas. The focus was on how Trump's signature bill could harm North Carolinians.