NC Medicaid program having cost-control delays

    RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina’s health and human services secretary says the Medicaid program is having trouble meeting budget because it’s been unable to implement cost-saving measures fast enough.
    Secretary Lanier Cansler said Tuesday the state’s portion of the government health insurance program for poor families and the disabled is $160 million over budget so far this fiscal year.
    The department attributes much of the problem to higher-than-expected enrollment and flu-related treatments. But Cansler said many Medicaid program cost controls won’t be implemented until Jan. 1 due to federal approval delays.
    Cansler said he’s hopeful expenditures will level out the rest of the fiscal year. But he said Medicaid could still be $200 million over budget by next June.
   
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