According to recent data from KFF, 75% of the nearly three million Americans who have lost Medicaid coverage may still be eligible for the public health insurance program. Across 32 states and Washington, D.C., the same percentage of people lost coverage due to failure to complete the renewal process, showing that their insurance may have been terminated despite their current eligibility. Loss of coverage has also been attributed in great part to states not having up-to-date contact information on record for the individual, or that the person may not fully comprehend the renewal process, causing them to miss the deadline altogether.
Some states, such as Michigan, are taking steps to help minimize loss of coverage. The state will give Medicaid enrollees an extra month to return enrollment forms before their coverage is terminated. In fact, the state’s disenrollment pause resulted in 15,000 additional Medicaid renewals. Meanwhile, officials in North Carolina are advancing Medicaid expansion efforts, which would provide coverage to up to 500,000 state residents.
