On Friday Louisiana will end cut health-care services for HIV patients and low income moms and children. The cuts are part of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal’s rebalancing of the budget to close a midyear deficit.

State officials say they only cut programs that were also available through other federally funded programs but acknowledged some residents will lose care:

The Town Talk has more details:

Scheduled for elimination are programs that provide behavioral health services for at-risk children, offer case management visits for low-income HIV patients and pay for at-home visits by nurses who teach poor, first-time mothers how to care for their newborns.

The Medicaid program will no longer cover physical therapy and speech therapy rehabilitation services for nursing home residents. Dental benefits to pregnant women through Medicaid will be cut off. Hospitals and doctors will be paid less when they care for Medicaid patients. 

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Health and Hospitals Secretary Bruce Greenstein said he targeted programs that were duplicative, costly and optional under the state’s participation in the state-federal Medicaid program.

Greenstein said in many instances, people can get the care they’re losing through other government-funded programs. But he acknowledged that won’t happen in every case, meaning some people will simply lose the services or receive reduced services.