Montana
Montana's Medicaid disenrollment is even a bigger catastrophe than previously reported – Daily Montanan
You wouldn’t believe how many different ways I tried to begin this column trying to find the perfect analogy or phrase to sum up just how badly the Gianforte administration has handled Medicaid in Montana.
Describing it as a dumpster fire, for example, would imply that a raging fire is contained in a small space. More importantly, it says nothing about the real Montanans who lives are upended by what is a political decision that has more to do with Republicans trying to out-Republican each other than it does with being earnestly concerned about fraud, the reason given for making Medicaid enrollment so severe in Montana.
Our ideologue governor has taken a system that was often cited as a model of how the Medicaid expansion could work and dismantled it, hurting Montanans who struggle, hospitals and healthcare professionals, and reneging on a financial set-up so sweet that it should make anyone with a little business acumen scratch their head.
Let’s begin with the basics: After the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone, including the federal government, knew that Medicaid rolls would need to be trimmed, and expected that many who were previously eligible would drop because they had either restarted employment or found a new job.
But Montana’s number of people dropped from the public insurance enrollment has literally been extraordinary. As it stands right now, 10% of the state’s entire population has been dropped – a sheer number that should raise eyebrows.
The Gianforte administration in its zeal to attack a successful government program that has meant better health for residents as well as more stability for our stretched rural-centered healthcare, has also thumbed their noses at a deal that costs the state just a fraction of what it could be spending. For every dime the state contributes toward Medicaid, Montana receives 90 cents from the federal government. Virtually no other state gets a deal quite this sweet, and if the Gianforte administration had half of the business acumen it touts, it would be doing everything it could to take advantage of this deal.
Who wouldn’t take a deal that guaranteed giving us nine times the money we invest?
Setting aside the most important point that seems to get lost in every Medicaid policy discussion: The effect of Medicaid expansion in Montana has meant that residents are living healthier lives because they have insurance, and Medicaid has also meant a financial lifeline to hospitals who were strapped with a growing number of uninsured and underinsured patients.
These rural healthcare facilities in Montana are often the economic backbones of smaller communities, often being the largest private employer in rural communities. What the Gianforte administration has done, with the legislature’s approval, is threaten the viability of rural healthcare in the state by booting residents off the Medicaid rolls, leaving those already strapped healthcare organizations to absorb the loss. The lawmakers decided that Montana should “redetermine” eligibility more quickly, meaning there’s more churn to Medicaid, meaning more instability for residents and the healthcare they rely upon. Look no farther than what has happened to our rural nursing homes to see the results of not funding healthcare adequately.
But don’t take my word for it, look at the statistics. Montana has been booting residents from the Medicaid roll at a clip that is around three times more than average nationally. What makes that fact even more troubling is the inconsistent, if not conflicting, reports lawmakers have gotten from the Department of Public Health and Human Services, whose answers have more closely resembled a choose-your-own-adventure book than transparency.
You may recall that as Montana started its Medicaid purge, the Biden administration placed the state on notice that it was booting residents so quickly while at the same time seeming to ignore that the state had created a situation that was nearly impossible for those same residents to talk to a live person to get help.
Keep in mind that Gianforte himself made close to a billion dollars by creating a technology company that served to create customer service call centers. So much, apparently, for running the state like a business. This should have been something that Gianforte could have solved himself.
As lawmakers from both parties expressed concern that Montana was booting too many residents too quickly off Medicaid, DPHHS director Charlie Brereton quipped that the state could actually speed up the process – a sort of veiled threat that lawmakers should step lightly.
Yet last week, when lawmakers continued to press for answers about why so many people were losing insurance, as well as other related matters, Brereton told legislators that his staff were so taxed, and spread so thin that they simply don’t have time to answer their questions – the same people who are charged with making policy decisions about this essential care.
So, I’ll ask: Which is it, Mr. Brereton? Is it that your staff could boot Montana residents even more quickly from health insurance that they need, or is it that you can’t even provide answers because your staff is so overworked?
An equally plausible answer is that the administration could start bumping off residents from Medicaid more quickly and won’t answer the lawmakers’ questions because the state is carrying out a political decision that has little to do with ensuring Montanans’ health, making a sound financial decision or worrying about the economic health or rural Montana.
Let me put it bluntly, though – in terms that would normally be hyperbole, but, in this case, are literal.
When people don’t have insurance, they suffer more and die sooner.
When rural healthcare facilities see a rise in uncompensated, uninsured patients, they close.
When lawmakers can’t get answers from their partners in government, public trust is eroded and government moves from function to dysfunction.
Maybe the Gianforte administration can help me: How is any of this an example of good government?
Montana
Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for March 4, 2026
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 4, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 4 drawing
07-14-42-47-56, Powerball: 06, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from March 4 drawing
33-38-39-47-51, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 4 drawing
01-07-08-27, Bonus: 12
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 4 drawing
05-10-26-53-59, Powerball: 06
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Montana Cash numbers from March 4 drawing
03-04-06-08-10
Check Montana Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 4 drawing
12-13-36-39-58, Bonus: 03
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Montana
University of Montana president job draws high interest • Daily Montanan
The search for a new University of Montana president has drawn more than 60 applicants, according to a spokesperson for the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education.
“We do not have an exact count at this time, as several applications are still being completed and additional submissions are expected,” said spokesperson and Deputy Commissioner Galen Hollenbaugh in an email earlier this week.
In January, then-UM-President Seth Bodnar announced his resignation to pursue other public service. Wednesday, the final day of filing, he announced he was running as an independent for the U.S. Senate to try to unseat Republican incumbent Steve Daines.
Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian earlier said that with the advice of AGB Search, a firm that’s helped the Montana University System conduct other executive searches, he would undertake an expedited process to appoint a new president.
Christian has been providing brief updates on a website dedicated to the search. Last week, he said he and AGB Search are reviewing applications, and the pool of candidates was “strong and diverse.”
The commissioner also announced he was convening a small working group to assist in the search, members who “represent a variety of perspectives to assist in vetting and narrowing this field of exceptional candidates.”
In an email this week, Hollenbaugh identified the members of the working group who are assisting Christian with application review as:
- Community member and former Regent Joyce Dombrouski
- Faculty Senate Chairperson Valerie Moody
- Staff Senate President Dominic Beccari
- Administration Representative John DeBoer (Vice President of Academic Affairs)
- ASUM (Associated Students of the University of Montana) President Buddy Wilson
Hollenbaugh declined to comment on the way the rest of the process would unfold or the role the working group members would play.
Christian earlier said he anticipated an appointment within one to three months, or as soon as early this month.
Montana
Montana Supreme Court allows ballot measure on initiative process to move forward
HELENA — The Montana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a proposed ballot measure intended to simplify the process for introducing ballot measures in the future.
Justices ruled 5-2 that the measure, currently called Ballot Issue #8, did not violate state requirements that a single constitutional amendment can’t make multiple separate changes to the Montana Constitution.
“We’re very grateful to the Montana Supreme Court for agreeing with us that the attorney general’s finding of legal insufficiency for Ballot Issue #8 was incorrect,” said SK Rossi, a spokesperson for Montanans Decide, the group sponsoring the measure.
Montanans Decide argues the Montana Legislature has passed laws making it harder for the public to propose and pass ballot issues. The Montana Constitution already guarantees the people the right to pass laws and amendments through ballot measures, but Ballot Issue #8 would expand that to include a right to “impartial, predictable, transparent, and expeditious processes” for proposing those measures. It would seek to prevent “interference from the government or the use of government resources to support or oppose the ballot issue.”
Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office argued the measure “implicitly amended” multiple provisions in the state constitution, including by limiting the “power and authority of public officials to speak officially on ballot issues that affect those officials’ public duties” and by putting restrictions on judges and on the Legislature. Montanans Decide, the group sponsoring Ballot Issue #8, disagreed – and the majority of justices sided with them.
“Its provisions operate together to define and protect a single constitutional right—the people’s exercise of initiative and referendum,” wrote Justice Katherine Bidegaray in the majority opinion. “They are closely related components of one constitutional design.”
Bidegaray’s majority opinion was joined by Justices Jim Shea, Laurie McKinnon, Beth Baker and Ingrid Gustafson.
Chief Justice Cory Swanson and Justice Jim Rice each wrote dissenting opinions, saying they would have upheld Knudsen’s decision to disallow Ballot Issue #8. Rice said the language restricting government interference with a ballot issue was not closely related and should have been a separate vote. Swanson agreed with Rice and said the measure’s attempt to fix a timeline for legal cases surrounding ballot measures was also a separate substantial change.
In a statement, Chase Scheuer, a spokesperson for Knudsen’s office, reacted to the decision.
“This decision only further muddies the courts’ jurisprudence on ballot issue questions,” he said. “This initiative would violate the separate vote requirement by amending multiple parts of the Montana Constitution, but the court contradicted its prior rulings. Attorney General Knudsen will continue to neutrally apply the separate vote requirement in his review of ballot initiatives.”
The court’s decision means that Knudsen’s office will now need to approve ballot language for Ballot Issue #8. Once that language is finalized, Montanans Decide could begin gathering signatures to qualify the measure for the November ballot.
However, last year, sponsors of another initiative went to the Supreme Court to argue that the ballot statements Knudsen prepared were misleading. If Montanans Decide object to their ballot statements, that could further delay signature gathering while the case plays out in court.
“Regardless, we’re going to push as hard as we can to get those petitions into the hands of voters and let them sign and support if they so choose,” said Rossi.
Rossi said the legal battle this measure has gone through – and the possibility of more to come – shows why Ballot Issue #8 is needed.
“The state Legislature, and also statewide elected officials, have taken every opportunity to create burdens and hurdles and rigamarole for campaigns to get through in order to just get to the signature gathering phase, and then to get through the signature gathering phase onto the ballot, and then get through the election phase,” said Rossi. “The reason we filed this initiative is just to make sure that the process is simple, that the timeline is clear, and that Montanans can have their will heard when they want to propose and pass laws that they deem worthy.”
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