[6/22/04]House members from Vicksburg, Rep. George Flaggs and Rep. Chester Masterson, both say they have changed their minds about votes they cast to remove 65,000 Mississippians from Medicaid.

Flaggs, a Democrat, now wants Gov. Haley Barbour to call a special session so lawmakers can extend Medicaid benefits past July 1.

“Politically and morally, this is the worst vote I’ve ever taken,” Flaggs said Monday. “It’s indefensible. I publicly apologize to my constituents.”

Masterson, a Republican and a physician, said he heard from people close to Barbour that the governor is planning on calling a special session next week and that if a session is called, he’ll favor rolling back changes.

During the regular session that ended in May, Barbour urged lawmakers to pass a bill that would tighten the state’s Medicaid eligibility requirements. Projections were that 60,000 people would be moved to Medicare and 5,000 people would receive federal waivers to remain eligible for public health coverage.

Medicaid, primarily for the indigent, is funded by state and federal dollars, and officials said Mississippi should save about $41 million in state funds through transferring people to Medicare, primarily for the elderly, in which no match is required.

But even for the 60,000 who would qualify for Medicare, coverage is less comprehensive. Some prescription coverage would have to be paid out-of-pocket. Organized and spontaneous protests have followed with people calling the change callous.

“These are not welfare queens,” Masterson said. “These are people 65 and older and disabled. They have paid taxes all their life and we can’t abandon them.”

Sen. Mike Chaney, R-Vicksburg, disagrees with his fellow lawmakers from Vicksburg and says a special session isn’t required.

“The state can apply for waivers,” he said. However, he said it is not guaranteed that the federal government will grant waivers, which could put off any cuts until next February.

Chaney also said if a session is called, legislators should have a plan outlined before going back to the Capitol.

Flaggs said he changed his mind during the past three weeks because of the number of people who have spoken out about losing Medicaid support. He said he had no idea that so many people would be affected.

“We have enough money,” Flaggs said. “We just need to move it around.” He added that the Legislature could dip into tobacco trust fund reserves.

Masterson said his stance has switched due to the number of people receiving Medicaid nonrenewal notices in the mail and because not enough time was allowed to provide information to those losing Medicaid support. He said officials needed to contact drug and drug card companies to inform Medicaid recipients on how they could get prescriptions for reduced prices or free.

He said ideally he would like to keep the Medicaid system as is, but if that is not possible he would like to push back the cutoff date to October 1.

Masterson said the status quo is not sufficient. He said he would support any change to the current legislation, because too many Mississippians will be put in a tough situation otherwise.