A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to phase out the county share of the nonfederal share of medicaid costs over a four‑year period.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the county share of the nonfederal share of Medicaid costs, excluding administrative costs, shall be phased out over a four‑year period, as follows:
(1)	Effective July 1, 2006, the county share of the nonfederal share, excluding administrative costs, shall be eleven and one-quarter percent (11.1/4%).
(2)	Effective July 1, 2007, the county share of the nonfederal share, excluding administrative costs, shall be seven and one-half percent (7.1/2%).
(3)	Effective July 1, 2008, the county share of the nonfederal share, excluding administrative costs, shall be three and three-quarters percent (3.3/4%).
(4)	Effective July 1, 2009, the nonfederal share of Medicaid costs, excluding administrative costs, shall be borne by the State.
SECTION 2.  Effective July 1, 2009, G.S. 108A‑54 reads as rewritten:
"§ 108A‑54.  Authorization of Medical Assistance Program.
The Department is authorized and empowered to establish a Medical Assistance Program from federal and State appropriations and to adopt rules and regulations under which payments are to be made in accordance with the provisions of this Part.  Each county shall be responsible for the full cost of administering the Medical Assistance Program for the county."
SECTION 3.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Medical Assistance, the sum of one hundred twenty‑six million five hundred thirty‑eight thousand seven hundred eighty‑one dollars ($126,538,781) for the 2006‑2007 fiscal year.  These funds shall be used to cover the cost to the State of reducing the 2006‑2007 county share of the nonfederal share, excluding administrative costs, of Medicaid costs. 
SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2006.