6.7M Children Could Lose Medicaid Or CHIP Coverage In July – Kaiser Health News
A congressional provision prevents states from disenrolling children during a public health emergency. That could happen in July, although the Department of Health and Human Services has promised to give states 60 days notice, CNN reports.
CNN:
Millions Of Children Could Lose Medicaid Coverage Once The Public Health Emergency Ends
The number of kids covered by Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program has soared to a record 40 million during the pandemic, aided by a congressional provision that bars states from disenrolling them during the public health emergency. However, at least 6.7 million children are at risk of losing that coverage and going uninsured for a period once the emergency expires, according to a new analysis released Thursday by the Georgetown Center for Children and Families. That could happen in July — the Department of Health and Human Services has promised to provide states with 60-days notice. (Luhby, 2/17)
Kansas City Star:
Report: MO Kids At Highest Risk Of Medicaid Cutoffs When Emergency Ends
Children in Missouri are among those most at risk of losing health coverage over the next several months when the federal pandemic emergency ends, a Georgetown University report finds. For the past two years, states have been barred from removing anyone from the Medicaid rolls under a public health emergency declared during the COVID-19 pandemic. They were given additional federal funds to pay for the coverage. When the emergency ends, the federal government has given states one year to undertake the massive task of re-evaluating the income and eligibility of all Medicaid recipients. (Kuang, 2/18)
OPB:
Oregon Agrees To Sunset Limit On Benefits For Kids On Medicaid
The Oregon Health Authority is quietly making a major policy change that could give doctors and families more power to negotiate what treatments are covered for children on the Oregon Health Plan. The state has been taking public comment on its latest five-year proposal for Medicaid and will submit a final draft for federal approval this month. (Templeton, 2/16)
And more Medicaid news —
Modern Healthcare:
Payers, Providers Ask For 3-Month Notice Of Medicaid Redeterminations
Eight healthcare lobbying organizations want Congress to give their members at least three months notice before ending enhanced federal Medicaid funding and resuming eligibility redeterminations, they wrote in a letter to congressional leaders Thursday. A decrease in federal support for states paired with a sudden increase in the number of uninsured people has implications across the healthcare system and time to prepare is necessary, the groups wrote. (Tepper, 2/17)
Columbus Dispatch:
Ohio Medicaid Closer To Launching Reform For Severe-Needs Children
The Ohio Department of Medicaid took an important step Thursday toward its July rollout of a revamped and reformed Medicaid system, announcing the 20 organizations that would launch the OhioRISE program, short for Resilience through Integrated Systems and Excellence. The program would fix the current situation where parents are at risk of giving up custody of their children to the state in order to get the required, unaffordable mental health and residential care needed by a child with severe behavioral and mental problems. (Wu, 2/17)
KHN:
Missouri Takes Months To Process Medicaid Applications — Longer Than Law Allows
Aneka French applied for Medicaid in October, not long after Missouri became the 38th state to expand eligibility for the program. But her application sat for months in a backlog with tens of thousands of others. While she waited, French, 45, an uninsured medical technician from St. Louis, paid out-of-pocket when she was treated at a health clinic for a knee injury last fall. (Sable-Smith and Galewitz, 2/18)
This is part of the KHN Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.
