Tennessee has received approval from the federal government for an unprecedented change in the Medicaid program which would convert the TennCare program to a block grant funding system.  Tennessee is the first state  to receive approval for block grant funding for its Medicaid program – in fact, it’s the only state that has ever asked to receive a block grant.  Block grant funding could transform the TennCare program by providing Tennessee with a fixed amount of federal funding for the TennCare program in exchange for an increase in flexibility in how the funding is used and how the TennCare program is administered.