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FYI: The Bush administration proposed sweeping reforms to Medicaid on Friday that Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson said will “bring the same clear-eyed spirit of innovation to Medicaid that we brought to welfare.” Rather than increasing federal funding, as many states and Democratic Congress members have asked, the plan aims to expand state-level control of the program by offering significant financial incentives for state-driven innovations that would no longer require advance federal approval. States would not be allowed to alter coverage for Medicaid enrollees who qualify based on federal income requirements, but would be encouraged to experiment with programs for the additional 15 million people who states have individually opted to insure. [2/4]