Mecklenburg County leaders say uncertainty around state and federal funding could jeopardize behavioral health services heading into the new year.
Division Director Dr. Cotrane Penn told commissioners Tuesday that the North Carolina General Assembly’s failure to pass a state budget — combined with provisions in the Trump administration’s tax and spending bill — puts Medicaid expansion at risk. North Carolina’s expansion law includes a trigger that automatically ends the program if the state’s share of costs rises above 10%.
“The minute that the state has to pay more than 10%, we're out,” Penn said. “And so that is at risk. We don't know what that's gonna look like.”
More than 347,000 Mecklenburg County residents receive health coverage through Medicaid.