According to new data from KFF, about 75 percent of the 2.7 million people who have lost Medicaid coverage across 32 states and Washington, D.C. still may be eligible for the program. The data shows that a majority of those removed from Medicaid lost coverage due to administrative errors or because they did not complete the necessary process to renew their coverage. Experts have been raising the alarm on the widespread coverage losses that have occurred since Medicaid redeterminations resumed back in April. It is a particularly worrying trend because when individuals lose one form of insurance, they often struggle to find alternative coverage, putting them at risk of becoming uninsured, or having a gap in coverage. The data from KFF indicates that Texas and Florida so far account for the largest shares of people removed from the Medicaid program over the last three months. In Texas, 81 percent of those who had their insurance terminated lost coverage because they did not complete the renewal process. In Florida, 65percent lost coverage for the very same reason.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) estimates that as many as 15 million people could lose coverage at the end of the redetermination process, with these procedural disenrollments accounting for a majority of coverage losses. This week, nine states agreed to pause procedural terminations, while mitigation plans have been approved for 35 states.
