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News & Press: Updates for Members

Public Health Emergency Ending - Medicaid Resources

Wednesday, February 8, 2023   (1 Comments)
Posted by: Valerie Arendt

End of Public Health Emergency - Big Changes coming to Medicaid and Disability Services

 

The Biden administration announced last week that the COVID-19 public health emergency, which has been in place since January 2020, is set to end on May 11.

 

Under the public health emergency, which has been in place since 2020, states have been eligible for extra federal funding for Medicaid in exchange for agreeing not to drop most beneficiaries from the program. The federal government has also given home and community-based services providers added flexibilities as they work to maintain staffing.

 

The change will trigger a massive effort by Medicaid programs nationwide, including North Carolina, to re-evaluate each beneficiary to determine whether or not they remain eligible. That has advocates worried that some people with developmental disabilities could be inadvertently dropped from the program even if they still qualify.

 

Here is more information from NC Medicaid: 

https://medicaid.ncdhhs.gov/End-of-PHE

 

NASW Resource: Planning for Medicaid Unwinding in 2023

 

During the Public Health Emergency (PHE) the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented continuous coverage requirements and additional flexibilities to help people across the country get on, and stay on, Medicaid. As these adjustments were primarily intended to address the effects of a rapidly evolving pandemic, many flexibilities were set to terminate at the end of the PHE. However, the recently enacted Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 set the end date of the Medicaid continuous coverage requirement as March 31, 2023. As a result, state Medicaid agencies will begin the process of redetermining Medicaid eligibility as early as this month. The first Medicaid terminations can happen as early as April 1, 2023.

 

Here are some resources available from the National Health Law:

 

National Health Law Program is hosting a webinar on February 14 at 3pm EST/12pm PST - Unwinding Medicaid Continuous Coverage: Requirements & Red Flags

           

Won't you be our Medicaid valentine? We can't offer you red roses, but we can give advocates red flags to watch for as states begin their unwinding period for the continuous coverage provision. We will review the minimum requirements for redeterminations and the different methods CMS is allowing states to use during the unwinding. We will also discuss predicted problem areas and advocacy opportunities, as well as have time for questions. 

 

Register for the webinar here. If you have any accommodation requests please contact our Operations Team (webinars@healthlaw.org) at least 4 days prior to the start of the webinar

 

Comments...

Jessica D. Holton Holton says...
Posted Tuesday, February 14, 2023
Here is more information about the dangers of ending the PHE: https://peoplescdc.org/2023/02/14/preserve-and-expand-the-public-health-resources-under-the-covid-state-of-emergency/

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