by Ken Quintanilla

Guam - Three months have passed but still no word of approval from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services on the amendment to the Guam Medicaid Program State Plan. According to Department of Public Health Bureau of Healthcare and Financing administrator Tess Arcangel, CMS is carefully reviewing the amendment, as it's the first of its kind that would expand services to outside the U.S. and to the Philippines. Arcangel says this would save thousands of dollars in airfare fees.

"You can easily send a client to the Philippines and they are JACO certified or any hospital in the Philippines that has some kind of certification similar to the U.S.," he said.

Should Guam's amendment get approval it would serve as model should other states follow suit.

40,000 Guam residents were eligible for Medicaid last fiscal year.