Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Medicare Plans Special Enrollment Options For Some Seniors
Modern Healthcare: CMS Proposes 5 Medicare Special Enrollment Periods
Medicare beneficiaries experiencing specific illnesses or circumstances could soon get Part B coverage outside the normal open enrollment periods under a proposed rule released Friday. Individuals who are impacted by an emergency or disaster, formerly incarcerated people and those subject to a health plan or employer error that prevented them from enrolling in Medicare on time could get coverage during special enrollment periods under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposal. (Goldman, 4/22)
In Medicaid news from Texas, Alaska, Ohio, New York, and Alabama —
The Texas Tribune: Biden Administration Drops Fight Over Texas’ Medicaid Waiver
A federal health care program that Texas uses to help pay for health care for uninsured Texans — worth billions of dollars annually — is safe for another decade after the federal government said Friday that it would stop fighting the Trump-era agreement to extend the program beyond its expiration date later this year. “It is not the best use of the federal government’s limited resources to continue to litigate this matter,” reads a letter sent Friday to state health officials from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “This should resolve the issue without the need for further litigation and will create no disruption to the people who rely on Texas’ Medicaid program.” (Harper, 4/22)
Anchorage Daily News: Thousands Of Alaskans Could Lose Medicaid Benefits When Federal Health Emergency Ends
Thousands of Alaskans could lose Medicaid benefits as soon as July, when the federal government’s COVID-19 health emergency is expected to end. Alaska’s state health officials face the daunting task of combing through pandemic-swollen Medicaid rolls to establish who will no longer be eligible for benefits when the emergency ends. Health officials, who say they have been preparing for the shift for months, are concerned many of those Alaskans could soon find themselves without health insurance — particularly people who don’t know what steps to take to keep their coverage, don’t have up-to-date contact information on file, or who don’t act in time. (Berman, 4/24)
News 5 Cleveland: As Pandemic Ebbs, Fears Grow That Ohioans Will Be Improperly Forced Off Of Medicaid
Ohioans are no doubt greatly relieved that the coronavirus pandemic appears to be winding down — and taking with it the sickness, death and inconvenience of the past two years. But as it does, thousands of Ohioans will be hustled off of Medicaid, the health program for the poor and disabled. And it’s unclear what remedies they’ll have if they’re taken off the program improperly. (Schladen, 4/25)
Buffalonews.com: CAO Overbilled Medicaid $18.16 At A Time; Files $1M Lawsuit For Being 'Lulled Into Complacency'
An $18.16 mistake – made over and over again – has put the Community Action Organization of Western New York in a half-million dollar bind. The organization mistakenly added a weekly charge of $18.16 when billing Medicaid for many of those in its outpatient chemical dependence services program, according to an audit by the New York State Office of Medicaid Inspector General. (Lakamp, 4/24)
AL.com: Robert Bentley Urges Ivey, Legislature To Expand Medicaid: ‘Healthcare Simply Must Be Prioritized’
After not expanding Medicaid while he was in office, former Gov. Robert Bentley on Friday urged his successor and the Alabama Legislature to do just that, imploring them to “look beyond politics to the needs of our rural communities.” Bentley, who did not expand Medicaid even as the task force he convened to study the issue suggested he and the Legislature get it done, contended in a letter published Thursday by Alabama Political Reporter that he was not being inconsistent by calling on Gov. Kay Ivey to expand coverage of the insurance program. (Koplowitz, 4/23)
