Approximately half a million Louisianans have lost Medicaid coverage since 2023. The decline is due to the expiration of pandemic-era benefits and more frequent eligibility checks the state is implementing in anticipation of new rules included in the federal tax and budget megabill. As The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Sophie Kasakove reports, the coverage loss is translating to empty beds at addiction treatment centers and other health care providers:
“It is having real time effects and is a reason why people are not able to access the health care they need,” said Raegan Carter, director of health policy at the Louisiana Primary Care Association, which represents Odyssey House and dozens of other community health centers across the state. “If our uninsured numbers increase, if we begin to serve even more uninsured patients … we may end up closing health centers.”
Many people are losing Medicaid coverage because of paperwork issues, not because they’re ineligible:
Dr. Alecia Cyprian, CEO of Southeast Community Health Systems, which operates health centers across four southeast Louisiana parishes, said the state has at times stripped people of coverage after attempts to reach them have failed. Often, the state has outdated patient contact information. “Sometimes their phone numbers, their physical addresses change… Not keeping that information updated is impacting the ability of people to maintain coverage,” said Cyprian, who said that the uninsured rate among patients at the 21 health centers she oversees increased from 5% in 2022 to 11% in 2025.
Bipartisan fatherhood task force
State Sen. Royce Duplessis created a bipartisan task force last year with the goal of making fathers more engaged in their children’s lives. Gracie Thomas and Izzy Wollfarth of the LSU Manship New Service explain legislation the Louisiana Fatherhood Task Force is pushing for the 2026 session:
One, by Sen. Gregory Miller, R-Norco, would allow for the modification of custody agreements within five years of the date of the original agreement based on parental fitness and the safety of the child or children. The second bill, proposed by Sen. Samuel Jenkins, D-Shreveport, would create the Paid Parental Leave for Educators Fund, which would allow fathers and mothers who are educators in Louisiana to receive six weeks of paid parental leave for circumstances such as child birth, the adoption of a child or pregnancy loss.
Other states have taken similar steps to create fatherhood initiatives, which provide huge return on investments:
The Fatherhood Research and Practice Network, a national project previously funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, estimated that a father’s successful participation in a Responsible Fatherhood program, which includes GED programming, professional development, parenting education and diversion services as alternatives to incarceration, has a monetary value of $177,000 per father and about $32,000 to $38,000 per child..
More harmful SNAP changes
The Trump administration is reportedly planning to pull the plug on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program’s broad-based categorical eligibility (BBCE) program, which is used by Louisiana and 45 other states to help more families afford food. The program allows states to raise their SNAP income eligibility to help families with high child care expenses or other obligations afford groceries. A new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities explains the consequences of this move:
The Administration’s exact proposal is not yet public, but it would likely end SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) food assistance for approximately 6 million people, including more than 1.8 million children, based on available estimates, and reduce access to school meals and WIC for many children as a result.
The report breaks down who would be affected:
The people losing access to food assistance from SNAP, school meals, and WIC would mainly be working families, older adults, and people with disabilities. In other words, the change would primarily harm groups that federal and state policymakers from across the political spectrum have long sought to help: people who work but are living near poverty; older adults and people with disabilities with low, fixed incomes; and people trying to build modest savings in order to become more economically independent.
The Trump administration’s targeting of BBCE comes on the heels of the federal tax and budget megabill, which cuts SNAP funding by $187 billion over the next decade.
Waiting on Medicare to see the doctor
People nearing retirement age have experienced some of the sharpest increases in health care costs as a result of the expiration of enhanced federal subsidies. This price hike has caused many middle-aged adults to delay health care until they turn 65 and are eligible for Medicare. Sam Whitehead of KFF Health News reports:
Not only does that put their physical health at risk, said patient advocates, doctors, and health policy researchers, but it potentially just shifts the costs — and could lead to taxpayers’ footing even bigger bills to fix health issues that worsen amid the delays. “There’s going to be a lot of pent-up demand and unmet need,” said Jessica Schubel, a health policy consultant who worked in the Obama and Biden administrations. “Medicare is going to have to spend a whole heck of a lot of money covering and dealing with their treatment.”
The average monthly premium payment for a benchmark Affordable Care Act silver plan for a 60-year-old in Louisiana making 401% above the federal poverty line ($62,757 per year) has increased by $926 (208%) due to the expiration of federal subsidies.
Number of the Day
72% – Share of U.S. workers who say it’s a bad time to find a quality job. (Source: Gallup via the AP)