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Legislation creating more financial oversight in the state’s 19 billion dollar Medicaid program passed a House committee today.

The plan would require most Medicaid patients to enroll in a Health Management Organization. The HMOs would be responsible for making sure 80 percent of all Medicaid dollars were spent on medicine and services. Representative Dean Cannon says the plan would be ushered in slowly.

“There’s always nervousness with any kind of change. What we tried to do is create a really transformational policy that eliminates the special interest advantages of one party over another and create a level playing field for competition between the different regions,” said Cannon.

Under the plan there would be six regions regulated by the Agency for Health Care Administration. The Senate passed similar legislation earlier this year, implementing the changes in five counties. The House version affects 24 counties, spreading to all 67 over the next few years.