More than 200,000 Missourians – and millions could soon be without health insurance coverage through Medicaid if proper actions are not taken immediately.
In 2020, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) was signed into law, requiring states to keep people with Medicaid enrolled in the program during the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Previously, enrollees had to reapply for benefits every 12 months, but under FFCRA, they’re automatically reenrolled. States received additional funding for executing the policy, and uninsured rates hit record lows.
In February, the Missouri Department of Social Services announced it expects Medicaid enrollment numbers to “level off” then “slowly ramp down” by around 200,000 people over the course of the next fiscal year, which lasts from July 2023 to July 2024.
For the first time in three years, participants must take steps to re-enroll. Eligibility redeterminations end April 1. Missouri’s state legislature first tried to halt voter approved Medicaid expansion, then took a lackluster approach to its implementation.
It will certainly be among the states that immediately resume conducting eligibility checks and removing participants from rolls who are deemed ineligible. Some Medicaid health insurance recipients could lose coverage because they are no longer eligible because their income is now too high.
However, many Missourians could lose coverage because of procedural errors, including failing to return proper paperwork. States are working under federal guidelines to limit those types of procedural disenrollments.
The Deaconess Foundation is urging Medicaid recipients to take immediate action. According to a Deaconess release, “not everyone will complete their annual renewal the same month.
“Typically, the renewal process will occur the same month as the anniversary of when an individual’s coverage first began. Every currently enrolled Medicaid individual will receive a renewal letter at some point between April 2023 and April 2024.”
There are two steps needed to make sure renewal is completed by the deadline:
STEP 1: Get ready for renewals by keeping your contact information up to date so you can get important updates in the mail. If your address has changed in the last 3 years, you will need to notify the Family Support Division by:
Reporting a change online
Visiting your local resource center
Calling 855-373-4636
STEP 2: You will receive a letter in the mail sometime between April 2023 and April 2024. You can check the annual renewal timeline to find out when you should expect to get your letter. This letter will tell you what, if anything, you need to do next. If a response is required, make sure to submit it by the deadline so you do not risk losing your healthcare coverage.
The Biden administration is predicting that 15 million people could lose Medicaid benefits over the coming year. Overall, the country saw a coverage increase of five million people between 2020 and early 2022 and a historic uninsured rate of 8%.
Joseph R. Betancourt, president of the Commonwealth Fund which released the Medicaid statistics earlier this year, said it’s going to take courage to maintain the gains made.
“Health insurance is critical to assuring all Americans get the health outcomes they deserve for the enormous investments we make,” he said in a statement.
“The pandemic demonstrated what we can achieve with common-sense strategies to expand coverage — broadening access to care and diminishing longstanding disparities in insurance rates. We must have the courage to maintain these gains, and close the Medicaid gap for good. Going backwards, with millions losing coverage, should not be an option.”
The end of Medicaid’s automatic enrollment isn’t the only policy researchers say could harm low-income and people of color when it ends. They’ve also got their eyes on the Affordable Care Act.
The 2014 legislation made it possible for states to expand eligibility for their Medicaid programs. In those states, adults under age 65 with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level became eligible ($17,774 for an individual and $36,570 for a family of four in 2021).
More than 21 million people in more than 40 states and territories gained coverage because of the expansion. But despite increased financial incentives, 11 states have chosen to opt out — including Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and most other southern states with high populations of Black residents.
While Missouri has not opted out, there will be legislators who will immediately press to take the action that will leave many state residents without coverage.
Missouri and the states listed suffer from high maternal and stroke-related death rates.
Sara R. Collins, vice president for health care coverage and access and tracking health system performance at the Commonwealth Fund, said the expansion efforts have made it possible for more Black and Brown folks to get coverage, but more work needs to be done.
“The Affordable Care Act’s coverage expansions have helped drive historic progress in reducing racial and ethnic gaps in health insurance coverage, but we still have a long way to go,” she said in a statement.
“Too many Black and Hispanic adults are still unable to get insurance or the health care they need, which contributes to inequitable health outcomes. If we want to continue making progress toward a more equitable health system, it’s critical to ensure that all people are continuously covered, not just during a pandemic.”