62% of Adults Are Unaware of Medicaid Renewals Resuming Post-PHE

More than half of adults who are enrolled in or have a family member enrolled in Medicaid were unaware of upcoming Medicaid renewals set to resume after the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) ends, an Urban Institute brief found.

Medicaid is required to maintain continuous coverage for beneficiaries during the PHE. However, once the PHE ends, state Medicaid agencies will begin renewals and assess who is still eligible for coverage. The PHE is expected to continue until at least spring 2023, but millions are projected to lose Medicaid coverage once it expires.

Beneficiaries may lose coverage due to no longer being eligible for the program or failing to complete certain requirements to remain enrolled.

Urban Institute researchers used June 2022 Health Reform Monitoring Survey data to assess awareness of upcoming Medicaid renewals among adults enrolled in Medicaid and those who have a family member enrolled in Medicaid.

Over half of adults (62 percent) had heard nothing about returning to regular Medicaid renewals after the PHE ends. Meanwhile, 15.7 percent had heard a little about their state resuming renewals, 16.2 percent heard some, and 5 percent of adults had heard a lot.

Among the 37 percent of respondents who had heard at least something about the return of Medicaid renewals, the most common source they received their information was media, including social media, television, radio, and newspapers (34.3 percent).

Three in ten adults received information from a state agency and nearly a quarter received information from a health insurance company or plan. Respondents also received information from a doctor’s office, clinic, hospital, or another healthcare provider (17.8 percent).

Most people who heard about the changes from state agencies or health plans received information from a notification of the need to renew coverage (50.4 percent). Over a third of adults received requests to verify their address or other contact information or verify or update their income and other factors that could impact eligibility.

Nearly 30 percent obtained information about other coverage sources, while 21.3 percent learned how to get consumer assistance during the renewal process.

“Low awareness of the resumption of Medicaid renewals indicates state programs may face significant information gaps among enrollees about the looming change,” the brief stated. “And effective communication on this issue is challenging given that a specific date for the end of the PHE had not been set at the time of the survey and is still pending.”

However, Medicaid agencies can employ several strategies to simplify the process, such as developing plans for the PHE unwinding and renewing enrollee coverage automatically.

In addition, partnering with community-based organizations can help states manage Medicaid changes when the PHE ends, according to Manatt Health.

For example, community-based organizations can form advisory groups to gather feedback from beneficiaries and report back to states with any questions or concerns. Additionally, engaging with individuals who have experience navigating Medicaid can help states guide their communities through upcoming changes.

The Alliance of Community Health Plans (ACHP) also recently offered CMS suggestions on managing post-PHE Medicaid and CHIP processes. The organization recommended CMS increase consumer outreach and take steps to improve coverage transitions for those who will be ineligible for Medicaid.

ACHP offered recommendations about aligning enrollment and renewals, eliminating barriers to Medicaid and CHIP enrollment, and leveraging third-party data to improve the renewal and eligibility processes.