Cash crunch has lawmakers eyeing retailers

Pennsylvania is looking for ways to pay for a ballooning Medicaid program, and some officials think big retailers should help.

The federal government has slashed its support of Medicaid, leaving the General Assembly to fill a $616 million hole in the program for the 2005-2006 fiscal year. Democratic leaders in the state House want large retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which often employ many of people enrolled in subidized care, to help pay for that care.

A measure in the state House would require the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare to produce an annual report on employers who have more than 20 people enrolled in a public health program, such as Medicaid. …