Montana health director nominee faces Senate confirmation
Associated Press— The nominee to be Montana’s next health director faced an unwieldy disease outbreak and pushed Medicaid work requirements — two issues looming in Montana — when he held a similar job in Kentucky. “The biggest question is: What did he learn in Kentucky?” During Meier’s confirmation hearing before Montana’s Senate Public Health, Wellness and Safety Committee, the nominee said one lesson he learned was to invest in public health infrastructure. Allison Adams, public health director of Buffalo Trace District Health Department in Kentucky, defended the state’s actions in one February 2019 letter, arguing Kentucky’s leadership “made sound decisions regarding the support and known resources available.” Meier has pitched himself as someone who works well with others, bolstered Kentucky’s family services and cut through the state’s bureaucracy. Penn State’s Haeder, who observed Meier’s tenure, criticized Meier’s support for Medicaid work requirements, saying “excessive amounts of data show how detrimental they are to public health” because vulnerable people lose coverage.
History of this topic
Montana’s health department getting new leadership
Associated Press
Column: Biden drives another nail into the coffin of Medicaid work requirements
LA Times
Column: Goodbye to those stupid, useless and biased Medicaid work requirements
LA Times
Medicaid work requirements: Biden administration begins to unwind Trump moves
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