The North Carolina House Health and Human Services Committee will take up a Senate-passed bill today to reject two provisions under the federal Affordable Care Act - Medicaid expansion and creation of a state-run health care exchange.

States need to prepar for the inevitable cuts in federal funding.

Ohio's Gov. John Kasich's decision on whether to expand Medicaid to hundreds of thousands of residents is expected to come with today's budget announcement.

More than $1 billion in federal Medicaid funding could be lost after New York state's costs were found excessive.

Over all, the proposed $142.6 billion budget represents a 5.3 percent increase over the current one, but much of the increase will be covered by federal money provided for the recovery from Hurricane Sandy and the enactment of the health care law championed by President Obama.

Maryland is still waiting to see what happens in Washington, as Congress wrestles with deep spending cuts in coming weeks. Federal budget cuts can have a big impact on the state, due to the state's proximity to the nation's capital.

Minnesota lawmakers are being told to expect a new state economic forecast on Feb. 28, but also being warned that more uncertainty from Washington will cloud the picture.

Governors warned Congress Wednesday that lingering uncertainty over raising the nation's borrowing capacity could hinder their budgets and their ability to foster job growth in their states.

State government has its own fiscal pain to deal with, and views are mixed at the Capitol on how to proceed.

It is well understood that the federal government must make spending cuts-these cuts will most likely drastically change the amount of federal dollars that are allocated to the states. Unfortunately for most states, dependence on federal funding has continually risen since 2008.

It is well understood that the federal government must make spending cuts-these cuts will most likely drastically change the amount of federal dollars that are allocated to the states. Unfortunately for most states, dependence on federal funding has continually risen since 2008.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), signed into law on March 23, 2010, made significant changes to the way eligibility for the Medicaid program will be determined and who the program will cover. State governments will play a key role in implementing many aspects of this reform, which must be in place by the beginning of 2014. States will need to address the financial implications of implementing this Medicaid expansion and accompanying enrollment systems.

States will face particularly intense budgetary challenges in education and health care in fiscal 2013, putting pressure on all budget areas - including corrections and infrastructure. As budgets face strain from slow revenue growth and expenditure pressures, states will likely confront tough budgetary choices in the next fiscal year.

The Health Care Compact is an interstate compact - which is really just "an agreement between two or more states that is consented to by Congress" - that would return the authority and the responsibility to regulate health care back to the member states.

Fixing Maine's welfare system requires embracing a Wisconsin-style approach and keeping the system focused on promoting work and self-sufficiency. Maine's current welfare system does just the opposite, trapping people and families in poverty and promoting dependence and an overreliance on government.

South Carolina should refuse federal No Child Left Behind Funds and the accompanying mandates and find a way to fund poor school districts adequately.

In the wake of the failures of the famed "Super Committee," $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts go into effect in 2013, and those cuts will undoubtedly impact state budets.  Although multi-faceted, the problem is clear: states must learn to fend for themselves financially.

Replacing the current federal financing structure of Medicaid with fixed allotments to the states would help save both state and federal budgets. Without this policy change, states will dig further budgetary holes and the federal government will face an increased likelihood of a debt crisis.  If states received a non-fungible Medicaid block grant from the federal government rather than fungible matching funds, each state would have the incentive to reign in Medicaid spending.  If states were freed from the myriad federal mandates (such as the “maintenance of effort” clause of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) they would gain the ability to run Medicaid efficiently.