“That tells us that we need to change up our strategy,” said Lipman. Even so, more people than he expected are not returning renewal forms. In New Hampshire, 44% received cancellation letters within the first two months - almost all for procedural reasons, like not returning paperwork.īut New Hampshire officials found that thousands of people who didn’t fill out the forms indeed earn too much to qualify, according to Henry Lipman, the state’s Medicaid director. In Utah, nearly 56% of people included in early reviews were dropped. High cancellation rates in those states should level out as the agencies move on to people who likely still qualify. Several states are first reviewing people officials believe are no longer eligible or who haven’t recently used their insurance. The uninsured rate among those under 65 is projected to rise from a historical low of 8.3% today to 9.3% next year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.īecause each state is handling the unwinding differently, the share of enrollees dropped in the first weeks varies widely. But millions of others, including many children, will become uninsured and unable to afford basic prescriptions or preventive care. Most people will find health coverage through new jobs or qualify for subsidized plans through the Affordable Care Act. Half of all kids are covered by the programs.Ībout 15 million people will be dropped over the next year as states review participants’ eligibility in monthly tranches. Months down the line, after untreated chronic illnesses spiral out of control, they’ll end up in the emergency room where social workers will need to again help them join the program, he said.īefore the unwinding, more than 1 in 4 Americans - 93 million - were covered by Medicaid or CHIP, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, according to KFF Health News’ analysis of the latest enrollment data. Some people dropped from Medicaid will have to forgo filling prescriptions and cancel doctor visits because they can’t afford care. Ed Clere, a Republican, expressed dismay at those “staggering numbers” in a May 24 Medicaid advisory group meeting, repeatedly questioning state officials about forms mailed to out-of-date addresses and urging them to give people more than two weeks’ notice before canceling their coverage.Ĭlere warned that the cancellations set in motion an avoidable revolving door. In Indiana, 53,000 residents lost coverage in the first month of the unwinding, 89% for procedural reasons like not returning renewal forms. Based on records from 14 states that provided detailed numbers, either in response to a public records request or by posting online, 36% of people whose eligibility was reviewed have been disenrolled. KFF Health News sought data from the 19 states that started cancellations by May 1. See previously: As states cut Medicaid, some fear they'll mistakenly end coverage for millions of eligible people Now, lawmakers and advocates are expressing alarm over the volume of people losing coverage and, in some states, calling to pause the process. Four out of every five people dropped so far either never returned the paperwork or omitted required documents, according to a KFF Health News analysis of data from 11 states that provided details on recent cancellations. The overwhelming majority of people who have lost coverage in most states were dropped because of technicalities, not because state officials determined they no longer meet Medicaid income limits. People who are no longer eligible or don’t complete paperwork in time will be dropped. Now, in what’s known as the Medicaid “unwinding,” states are combing through rolls and deciding who stays and who goes. But because of a nationwide pause in those reviews during the pandemic, the health insurance program for low-income and disabled Americans kept people covered even if they no longer qualified. Under normal circumstances, states review their Medicaid enrollment lists regularly to ensure every recipient qualifies for coverage. And a KFF Health News analysis of state data shows the vast majority were removed from state rolls for not completing paperwork. More than 600,000 Americans have lost Medicaid coverage since pandemic protections ended on April 1. Watch Video: Biden slams Republicans for wanting to repeal Obamacare, Medicaid
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