During a Senate Democrat press conference on the Capitol with disability advocates against the Republican Graham-Cassidy health care bill, supporters held up “Save Medicaid” signs.
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Nearly three million people have been excluded from Medicaid since COVID-19 pandemic protections expired in April, three-quarters of whom are still covered by public health insurance, according to data from health researchers. Despite being eligible for the program, he has lost coverage. KFFMore.
Medicaid is a public health insurance program for low-income individuals and families. Although it receives significant funding from the federal government, most of its operations are carried out by state governments.
Because of the complexity of the U.S. health care system, people who lose one coverage often struggle to find replacement coverage and are ultimately at risk of becoming uninsured, hence the widespread elimination of coverage. is a worrying trend.
About 75% of the 2.7 million people who lost Medicaid coverage in 32 states and Washington, D.C., were removed from the program because they didn’t complete the process to renew coverage, according to the latest data released on . It says. Monday.
This means that you may still be eligible for Medicaid, but your coverage may have been terminated.
Texas and Florida have the highest percentages of people who have been cut off Medicaid in recent months. In Texas, 500,000 people lost their insurance, 81% of whom had their insurance terminated because they did not complete the renewal process. 300,000 people in Florida lost their insurance, 65% of whom did not complete the paperwork.
The number of people losing Medicaid coverage will only increase this month as 11 states, including large states like California and New York, begin renewals for the first time in two years.
The Department of Health and Human Services estimates that up to 15 million people could lose their insurance if all goes well, but many of these people are expected to move to alternative insurance.
Nearly 7 million people are still at risk of losing Medicaid coverage despite remaining eligible for the program, according to HHS.
red tape
Congress has barred states from removing people from Medicaid in exchange for more funding during the coronavirus public health emergency. As a result, Medicaid enrollment surged to a historic high of more than 86 million by March 2023, a 26% increase compared to February 2020, according to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data. .
Those Medicaid protections expired in April after lawmakers slipped a provision into the Federal Spending Act in December that allowed states to begin removing people who were disqualified from programs. Medicaid eligibility is primarily based on income.
But due to bureaucratic red tape, many are losing coverage. This often happens when the state contact information is outdated and the person cannot be contacted. They may also not understand how the renewal process works or may not have submitted their documents by the deadline.
Jennifer Tolbert, an expert on Medicaid and the uninsured at KFF, said it was especially difficult for people with limited English to prepare the paperwork to renew their Medicaid coverage.
HHS estimated last year that a third of people at risk of losing Medicaid were Hispanic and 15% were black. Current data from most states are not broken down by demographic group.
Also, many children are missing Medicaid coverage. At least 250,000 children have been deenrolled from Medicaid in Arkansas, Arizona, Indiana, Oklahoma, Virginia and Washington, according to the KFF. The national total could be higher, as many states do not provide information on the number of children without coverage.
alternative compensation
Medical experts fear that even those who truly no longer qualify for Medicaid, such as a change in income, may not be able to switch to another insurer or coverage under the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. Are concerned. People have to apply for Obamacare every year, but some may not know how the process works.
HHS is Special admission period Help those excluded from Medicaid find alternative coverage through Obamacare.
Health Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a letter to U.S. governors in June that he was deeply concerned about the number of people who would needlessly lose their Medicaid coverage.
Becerra urged the governor to do all he can to prevent people from losing their insurance for inevitable reasons. Since Becerra sent that letter, the number of people who have lost Medicaid has more than doubled.
HHS has the authority to prevent states from terminating Medicaid coverage for their citizens when officials determine that local governments have not made a good faith effort to verify an individual’s eligibility. CNBC reached out to HHS for comment on the latest data.
Tolbert said limited data from a handful of states showed fewer people were switching to other forms of insurance, but this will change as more information comes in. said it was possible.
Tolbert said the uninsured rate in the United States is likely to rise if people struggle to get back on Medicaid or cannot transition smoothly to other coverage such as Obamacare.
