California recently launched a reformed Medicaid program, adding dental benefits, changing how addiction and mental illness are addressed, and more. But, Paula Lantz, James B. Hudak Professor of Health Policy, is worried about claims that the new program will save money in the long run.
"These kinds of interventions are often oversold to get the political buy-in and to get the resources by saying they're going to be cost neutral,” Lantz said. “My biggest worry is that there could be very positive impacts of what they're doing that don't show up in a bottom line, and then it just makes people not even want to invest in it any further.”
