Here’s how the process works. When the budgets are created during the general session of the Legislature, the different departments’ budgets are broken down into line items. In the Health Department budget, Medicaid, as a whole, is one line item. So, the Health Department has the ability to use the money appropriated for Medicaid in whatever priority they choose. It almost seems like there are individuals in and out of government who wanted the Legislature to take further control of the Medicaid budget and demand detailed priorities. It’s hard to win when we’re also being told to give the state departments more autonomy. In this case, the Legislature chose to leave the Health Department in control.

Now, lest anyone venture that the Health Department doesn’t feel empowered to make those decisions, let me offer an example. This year, when the Legislature changed the benefits for state employees’ insurance, they also recommended the Department of Health make the same changes on the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP). The Department of Health, within their rights, chose not to follow that recommendation, and instead keep the more expensive benefit. Because that decision fell within one line item, they were not out of line.

In reality, the real problem is that somebody wanted the Legislature to find new money and give extra to the Department of Health to fund Medicaid dental. My position is that if the Department believes that funding for dental is a top priority, they can fund it now and come to the legislature for supplemental funding in the general session. They do this every year for different programs within their budget.

On Wednesday the Daily Herald printed an editorial that said, “Huntsman needs to call the Legislature back to handle this piece of unfinished business, but he must first have his budget planners go over the state's spending package and find the money to finance the program”. This isn’t necessary at all. The Governor can tell the Department of Health today to fund the program, or the Department can do it on their own.

Since the federal government, over the last few years, has continued to fund less and less of the Medicaid programs, the Legislature is taking this year to research the programs and the needs the state will have in the coming years. We already know the funding requirements will be huge. We haven’t wanted to continue a federal optional program unless we were convinced it would be funded one year to the next. Therefore, the Dental program has not yet been funded with new money. Let’s see how really important it is to those empowered to act.