In a bid to avoid a government shutdown, congress passed a $1.7 trillion federal government spending bill on Friday — but the bill could mean big changes for some Medicaid recipients.
Florida Health Justice attorney, Miriam Harmatz, says some will fall into a coverage gap.
"The people who will suffer the most through the change are those who are no longer going to have any path to affordable coverage,” said Harmatz.
Millions of people who enrolled in Medicaid during the pandemic risk losing coverage in the spring under the bill that funds the federal government through Sep. 30.
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Congress previously barred states from kicking people off Medicaid during the covid public health emergency, which caused enrollment to surge 30% to more than 83 million people.
But as of April 1, a provision in the spending bill would allow states to do that if recipients no longer meet eligibility requirements.
"So when their Medicaid eligibility terminates because they're over a parent or caregiver, for example, over the meager income limit for adults in Florida, for parents and caregivers and 19- to 20-year-olds. And if they're below 100% of poverty, they are in what's called the coverage gap,” said Harmatz.
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The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) says the most important thing for parents and caregivers to do is to update their contact information.
“The department has been working in coordination with the agency for healthcare administration, Medicaid health plans, community partners and other state agencies to begin an outreach campaign to current Medicaid enrollees to communicate the importance of providing updated contact information so recipients can receive critical information regarding Medicaid coverage,” said DCF spokesperson, Paige Patterson-Hughes.
Patterson-Hughes says Medicaid enrollees who are no longer eligible are referred automatically to alternative options for healthcare coverage, including Florida Healthy Kids and the Medically Needy Program.
