GOVERNMENT Looming end of Medicaid unenrollment freeze sounds alarms
State of Medicaid The public health emergency was still in place as of June with an expira- tion date of July 15. However, the gov- ernment also requires a 60-day notice before Congress can allow the emer- gency to expire. That notice was not given May 15, meaning the emergency is likely to be extended into October, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a group that analyzes federal and state budget policies. In Montgomery County, the number of people enrolled in Medicaid hovered around 58,000 prior to the pandemic in 2019. Since then, the county rolls grew to 83,859 as of the most recent con rmed data from October. In Harris County, enrollment grew from about 680,000 in 2019 to 808,567 in October. When the public health emergency ends, a portion of Medicaid enrollees will have their coverage automatically renewed if they are deemed eligible. There will also be an unwinding period of up to 12 months during which states are to work with individuals who were not automatically re-enrolled to help them keep their coverage if they are still eligible. For states to succeed, they will have to focus on streamlining the applica- tion renewal process and communi- cating e ectively with enrollees, said Farah Erzouki, senior policy analyst with the CBPP. “These steps will be key to make sure people can be reached, that they know what changes are coming and they know what they need to do to keep their coverage,” Erzouki said during a May 18 press brie ng. Kayli Thompson contributed to this report.
BY SHAWN ARRAJJ & LAURA ROBB
The pandemic also highlighted a debate that has been ongoing since 2010: whether the state should expand Medicaid to cover more people. State Rep. Cecil Bell, R Magnolia, said he does not plan on focusing on Medicaid in the upcoming legislative session, as legislators have previ- ously taken steps to provide alterna- tive solutions for Texans, such as increased funding for local health care, expanded private sector insur- ance options and additional a ord- able prescription options. “The feds have not maintained fund- ing levels in the states, which previ- ously expanded Medicare, creating economic challenges for those states and their citizens,” Bell said.
Texans could be deemed ineligible for Medicaid once the public health emergency ends. Roughly 3.7 million of the 5.3 million Texans enrolled in Medicaid will have their eligibility redetermined once the emergency ends, according to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Roughly 73.2% of Texas Medicaid enrollees are children, according to the latest HHSC data. “Our main concern is you are look- ing at huge numbers having to reap- ply, and that’s going to take a lot of time to go through,” said Brian Sasser, chief communications o cer with the Houston-based Episcopal Health Foundation, which works with health care nonpro ts across Texas.
When the coronavirus pandemic emerged in March 2020, the U.S. gov- ernment issued a requirement that states could no longer kick people o Medicaid during the public health emergency. The purpose was to prevent people on Medicaid—a government-run health care policy—from being left without insurance on short notice. That requirement is still in place two years later, but health care advocates in Texas and Houston said they are wor- ried about what could happen when it ends and millions of people have their safety nets put into jeopardy. In September, the Urban Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, estimated as many as 1.3 million
JOINING THE ROLLS Medicaid enrollment declined slightly in 2019 but rose during the coronavirus pandemic. SOURCES: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES, U.S. CENTERS OF MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
1M
898,567
HARRIS COUNTY MEDICAID ENROLLMENT 695,113
681,471
800K
March 2020-Oct. 2021 TEXAS: +31.2% | HARRIS COUNTY: +31.9% MONTGOMERY COUNTY: +42.4%
600K
MARCH 2020: Federal government declares COVID-19 public health emergency, announces Medicaid unenrollment freeze
MONTGOMERY COUNTY (Feb. 2022) : 88,040*
HARRIS COUNTY (Feb. 2022) : 931,694*
400K
*PRELIMINARY DATA
MONTGOMERY COUNTY MEDICAID ENROLLMENT
200K
83,859
58,892
58,629
0
JAN. MARCH MAY JULY SEPT. NOV. 2020
JAN. MARCH MAY JULY SEPT. NOV. 2019
JAN. MARCH MAY JULY SEPT. 2021
The Woodlands 25750 Kuykendahl Rd, Ste. A Tomball, TX 77375
Because wrapping your kids in bubble wrap isn’t
Magnolia 9511 FM 1488, Ste.1100 Magnolia, TX 77354
an option. Open 9am – 9pm, 7 days a week
23
TOMBALL MAGNOLIA EDITION • JUNE 2022
Powered by FlippingBook