(1) The medicaid access program account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from the assessments, interest, and penalties collected by the authority and commissioner under RCW 74.76.030 and 48.208.010 must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the administration and implementation of the medicaid access program as established in RCW 74.76.050.

(2) Disbursements from the account may be made only:

(a) To make payments to health care providers and managed care organizations;

(b) To medicaid managed care organizations to fund the nonfederal share of increased capitation payments based on their projected assessment obligation established by the medicaid access program and the medicaid managed care rate setting process;

(c) To refund erroneous or excessive payments made by health carriers and medicaid managed care organizations;

(d) To pay for administrative expenses incurred by the authority in performing the activities authorized by this chapter;

(e) To be used in lieu of state general fund payments for medicaid services in an amount not to exceed $35,000,000 in the first fiscal year following the approval in RCW 74.76.020(2)(a) and assessment by the authority authorized in RCW 74.76.030(1)(a)(i);

(f) To repay the federal government for any excess payments made to health care providers from the account if the assessments or payment increases set forth by the medicaid access program are deemed out of compliance with federal statutes and regulations in a final determination by a court of competent jurisdiction with all appeals exhausted. In such a case, the authority may require health care providers receiving excess payments to refund the payments in question to the account. The state in turn shall return funds to the federal government in the same proportion as the original financing. If a health care provider is unable to refund payments, the state shall develop either a payment plan, deduct moneys from future medicaid payments, or both; and

(g) To pay up to $2,000,000 for administrative and service-related costs to expand medicaid access in schools by maximizing medicaid funding opportunities to support the school-based health services program, school-based health centers, and on-site behavioral health services.

Effective date—2025 c 359 ss 1-12, 14-16, and 18-20: See note following RCW 74.76.010.

Contingent expiration date—2025 c 359: See note following RCW 74.76.010.