Riser: Medicaid cuts 'not a what if anymore' by Michael DeVault - posted Thursday, July 5th, 2012 @ 12:00 pm  E-mail Story |  Print Story  The state Department of Health and Hospitals must slash more than $859 million from its budget to plug a budget hole that some lawmakers have described as "massive." The budget woes came somewhat unexpectedly after the U.S. Congress made changes to the federal FMAP Program, which distributes Medicaid money to states. Virtually all of the $859 million in cuts will result from reduced reimbursement rates for health care providers and other actions at DHH, according to Sen. Neil Riser. "Right now, the leadership is saying we're going to look at DHH first" said Riser, R-Columbia, who chairs the Senate Revenue and Finance Committee. Riser said the cuts would not affect operations in other state departments, but he noted that funding reductions in DHH will have the most significant impact on the state's poorest citizens. ..... For the full story, subscribe to the The Ouachita Citizen's NEW E-Edition!