Upcoming North Dakota Special Session Expected to be Rubber Stamp For Federal Health Care Funds

Sen. Brad Bekkedahl, R-Williston. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor

(North Dakota Monitor) – The North Dakota Legislature anticipates a special session early next year to formally earmark federal health care funding that is expected to be awarded by the end of the year. But lawmakers will not be able to make any changes to how those funds are spent.

That plan is being crafted by the Department of Health and Human Services, with input from a 33-member legislative committee, and is due to the federal government on Nov. 5. Sarah Aker, executive director of medical services for the department, said she believes the federal government will expect North Dakota to adhere to that plan.

“Once the plan is into (the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services), it can only be slightly adjusted,” Aker said.

The department’s application will determine how $500 million in federal funds for rural health care will be spent over the next five years.