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Lee Grossman, an administrator at the Wyoming Department of Health, has been named the next head of Iowa Medicaid by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.
Grossman is a native of Iowa and has over 14 years of expertise from the Wyoming Department of Health, where he has been the Medicaid Director since February 2023, according to Iowa HHS.
A news statement states that Grossman will start his new position in early September.
More than 700,000 Iowans, including children, low-income folks, pregnant women, elderly adults, and those with disabilities, are covered by Iowa Medicaid.
Grossman’s appointment coincides with the implementation of new eligibility and employment criteria at the state and federal levels.
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In a statement, Iowa HHS Director Kelly Garcia commended Grossman’s dedication to rural health care access, leadership, and knowledge.
As Lee assumes this role, I’m excited to welcome him home to Iowa, Garcia added. He is the perfect person to lead our Medicaid team through this crucial job at this crucial juncture because of his leadership and priceless experience. I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Lee, and what I see in him is a strong grasp of Medicaid, a steady hand, and an obvious dedication to the people this program serves. Lee’s expertise in expanding access to healthcare in rural areas will be a valuable asset at this time.
After a thorough nationwide search that began after Elizabeth Matney’s departure in November 2024, Grossman was chosen. In April 2021, Matney was named the Medicaid director for Iowa. In addition, she was the deputy director and chief operations officer of HHS. She has now founded Andeli Consulting, a consulting firm.
The Iowa Medicaid Director in transition has been Rebecca Curtiss.
According to the State Employee Salary Book, Matney’s base pay at the end of the fiscal year 2024—the most recent year for which records were easily accessible—was $183,851. At the conclusion of the same fiscal year, Curtiss was paid $149,635 as a basic pay for a deputy administrator at HHS.
Email inquiries on Thursday on Grossman’s compensation and if Curtiss will move into a new or different position at HHS were not immediately answered by Iowa HHS.
“It’s an honor to return to the state where I grew up and contribute in such a meaningful way,” Grossman said in a statement. Working with this group, which is devoted to assisting thousands of Iowans in leading healthier lives in the town of their choice, excites me.
This year, a number of changes to the joint federal and state program were implemented by state and federal politicians. These changes affect eligibility and require many recipients to work in order to maintain their health care coverage.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that legislation signed into law by President Donald Trump and approved by the Republican-led Congress will cut federal Medicaid expenditure by $911 billion over the next ten years.
Republicans argue that Medicaid spending will continue to rise over the next ten years and that recent expansions have created an unsustainable spending trajectory by making it more difficult for medical practices to take on additional Medicaid patients. They claim that by concentrating funds on individuals who actually require aid, the reforms will increase access to care and guarantee Medicaid’s long-term viability.
According to an estimate by the health policy group KFF, federal Medicaid spending in Iowa is expected to drop by $7 billion to $12 billion over the course of the next ten years.
Unless they are eligible for an exception, the legislation requires able-bodied, childless persons between the ages of 19 and 64 who are enrolled in Medicaid through the expansion of the Affordable Care Act to demonstrate that they are either employed, enrolled in school, or performing 80 hours of community service per month. Although it’s unknown how the federal measure’s adoption would impact Iowa’s work requirement statute, the state has passed its own legislation.
Despite a $50 billion stabilization fund for rural hospitals, experts warn that funding cuts could hurt them.
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