America’s health insurance system is undergoing a massive disruption in coverage, specifically for adults enrolled in Medicaid and for children enrolled in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). On April 1, 2023, four months after the COVID-19 public health emergency declaration ended, states resumed their Medicaid and CHIP redetermination process and since then, troubling data has been emerging from states about what is happening to the 93 million Americans — nearly one in four — who gained Medicaid or CHIP coverage during the health care emergency.
Today, PPI released a new policy brief titled “Medicaid and CHIP Redetermination: Mitigating Coverage Loss,” analyzing the impact redetermination has had on healthcare coverage across the country. Report author Erin Delaney, PPI’s Director of Health Care, examines what actions have been taken at the federal level to mitigate coverage loss, the trends of current redetermination data, and policy changes that both states and the federal government can embrace to ensure that millions of Americans don’t fully lose their access to health coverage as the country transitions out of continuous coverage.
Seven months into this monumental coverage transition, the U.S. has hit a new disenrollment milestone. As of Nov. 1, at least 10,046,000 Medicaid enrollees have been disenrolled based on the data from 50 states and the District of Columbia. Millions more are expected to lose coverage in the coming months. Worse, in the 20 states that report age breakouts, children account for about four in ten of these Medicaid disenrollments.
Most concerning among recently reported redetermination data is that 71% of people have been disenrolled due to procedural glitches, meaning states have outdated contact information, enrollees are increasingly confused by the paperwork, or are missing deadlines for completing renewal packets. And that’s not all — confusion abounds, as adults and children may or may not still be eligible for Medicaid and CHIP, may have other coverage options, or may remain eligible for Medicaid or CHIP but don’t know it.
“America is facing a crisis in health care coverage, the largest transition in coverage since the first open enrollment period of the Affordable Care Act. More than 10 million Americans are losing health care coverage and millions more are expected to lose coverage in the coming months,” said Erin Delaney. “Both state and federal lawmakers must take immediate action and focus on improving data collection and state utilization of available CMS waivers and flexibilities, maximizing coordination with various stakeholders, and continued intervention in states with high procedural termination rates.”
Download the policy brief here.
The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org. Find an expert at PPI and follow us on Twitter.
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Media Contact: Amelia Fox, afox@ppionline.org
