Governor, Lawmakers Still Divided Over Budget

With five days to go before state government could be forced to shut down, Governor Haley Barbour and the Mississippi legislature have not yet agreed on a budget for fiscal year 2010,
which begins July 1st.
But Barbour said the parties still have to close a $34 million Medicaid deficit for the current fiscal year.
In a Thursday news conference, Barbour said there were two possible solutions being discussed for resolving both budget problems, but he would not reveal what those options are.
Unless the governor and lawmakers agree on a spending plan by midnight June 30th, the wheels of government could come to a halt.
If that happens, the Transportation Department (MDOT) will be forced to immediately to stop work on 296 road construction projects across the state.
MDOT Chief Engineer Melinda McGrath says halting the projects will cost the state $350 million.
And in order for construction to resume once the budget is approved, McGrath says MDOT would have to redesign and rebid all of the projects.
Since Medicaid is already out of money, doctors and clinics across the state are not being reimbursed for providing services to 600,000 Mississippians who depend on the state’s health care
safety net.
Cox Medical Clinic in South Jackson is not paying its bills and may not be able to pay its four employees this week.
Ninty percent of Cox’s patients depend on Medicaid.