Skip to main content

Medicaid Glitch Removing Children From Cover

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.

By Physician’s Briefing Staff HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Aug. 31, 2023 -- A Medicaid "glitch" is removing health care coverage for potentially millions of children, U.S. health officials warned Wednesday.

Automated systems involved in a large-scale eligibility review are causing entire households to be removed from Medicaid coverage, according to a news release from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), but children in the home may still be eligible based on family income even if their parents are not.

The eligibility review is happening now because a prohibition on removing people from Medicaid that was established during the pandemic ended this spring. During that time, Medicaid rolls of those provided coverage grew from 71 million to 94 million, the Associated Press reported. Now, states are returning to annual eligibility determinations. The process of determining eligibility can include using computer programs to review income and household information, including whether someone received unemployment benefits or food assistance, and sending notices asking people to verify their eligibility. Those who do not qualify or do not respond can be dropped by Medicaid. But most states allow children to have coverage at much higher household income levels than for adults, the AP reported.

In many states, "eligible kids are not being successfully renewed, and that is a violation of federal requirements," Daniel Tsai, director of the CMS Center for Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program Services, told the AP. CMS is giving states until Sept. 13 to report whether this glitch is happening in their states. They are being told to pause procedural terminations, reinstate coverage for those inadvertently dropped and find a solution to prevent this until the automated system is fixed, according to CMS.

Associated Press Article

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted August 2023

Read this next

First Responders With More Debris Exposure Have Higher Risk of Early Dementia

FRIDAY, June 14, 2024 -- More severe exposure to dust or debris among World Trade Center (WTC) responders is significantly associated with a higher risk of dementia at <65...

1990 to 2019 Saw Increase in Life Expectancy in Seniors With T1DM

FRIDAY, June 14, 2024 -- From 1990 to 2019, there was an increase in life expectancy in older people with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), according to a study published online...

Second Tumors Are Rare After Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell Therapy

FRIDAY, June 14, 2024 -- Second tumors are rarely seen after chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, according to a study published in the June 13 issue of the New England...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.