Assemblyman Joseph M. Giglio (R,I,C-Gowanda) today announced that he has recently been named to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Medicaid Redesign Team. The team is charged with finding ways to save money within the Medicaid program in the upcoming state budget for the 2011-12 Fiscal Year.

“As we work to tackle New York’s tough fiscal situation, reviewing and redesigning Medicaid will be critical to creating a more solvent program that is less prone to waste,” said Giglio. “I’m pleased to be the lone appointee of the Assembly Minority Conference, and I appreciate the trust they’ve placed in me to represent our conference on the Team.”

Assemblyman Giglio currently sits on the Assembly Minority Medicaid Waste, Fraud and Abuse Task Force.

“The current system must be thoroughly reviewed,” said Giglio. “The Medicaid Redesign Team will be focused on gathering information and reviewing all ideas. We need to focus on how we can redesign the Medicaid system to make it more effective and cost efficient to assure the financial well-being of the taxpayers and the state.”

The Medicaid Redesign Team will engage stakeholders, conduct a comprehensive review of all ideas and make recommendations regarding the Medicaid program. The recommendations will include specific cost savings and quality improvement measures to meet specific budget reductions for Medicaid spending. Governor Cuomo modeled his approach to this Team from a similar initiative in Wisconsin.

Assemblyman Giglio participated in the first meeting of the team via a conference call whose participants included Governor Cuomo. The team must report its findings and recommendations to the governor by March 1 for consideration in the budget process. After that, the team will submit quarterly reports until the end of Fiscal Year 2011-12, when the team will dissolve.

New York's multi-billion dollar Medicaid program is paid for by state, county and federal taxes. According to the Governor’s Office, in a majority of the state's counties, Medicaid costs alone account for more than half of the entire county tax levy. New York also spends more than twice the national average on Medicaid on a per capita basis, and spending per enrollee is the second highest in the nation. At the same time, New York ranks 21st for overall health system quality and ranks last nationally for avoidable hospital use and costs.

“The emphasis on this will be redesign,” said Giglio. “As a state, we need to come together to find solutions to bring costs down without compromising care.”