Medicaid Disenrollments Leave Nearly One Million Americans Without Healthcare Coverage as COVID-19 Rule Expires

At least 728,000 individuals have lost Medicaid coverage since the end of the COVID-19-related continuous enrollment provision in March, according to a report by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).

Congress ended Medicaid’s pandemic-era continuous enrollment provision on March 31, and states are now beginning to resume Medicaid disenrollments. (Photo: The New Republic)

Medicaid Disenrollment Affects Americans

The analysis, which only includes 13 states and the District of Columbia, suggests that the number of people who have lost coverage could be much higher, as many states do not offer public data on Medicaid disenrollments, as stated by KFF.

Shockingly, up to 17 million people could potentially lose Medicaid coverage as a result of the discontinuation of the continuous enrollment provision or the Medicaid disenrollments, MSN reported.

This policy was enacted under the Trump administration in 2020 and required Medicaid programs to keep recipients enrolled throughout the public health emergency, as revealed by KFF.

The reasons behind most the Medicaid disenrollments are procedural in nature, such as recipients failing to complete the renewal process on time or the state having outdated contact information.

In fact, only 10-20% of the disenrollments in most states are due to recipients being ineligible, as indicated by KFF. However, Iowa and Pennsylvania stand out as exceptions, with 45% and 57% respectively being removed from Medicaid coverage due to ineligibility.

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Impact of Medicaid Disenrollments

The impact of these Medicaid disenrollments is felt across the nation, with Florida being hit the hardest.

In Florida alone, approximately 249,400 people have been removed from Medicaid rolls, followed by about 141,600 in Arkansas and about 66,300 in Idaho, as reported by KFF.

Sadly, this trend is expected to continue as ten more states are slated to begin disenrollments by October.

The discontinuation of the COVID-19-related continuous enrollment provision has had severe consequences for vulnerable Americans who rely on Medicaid for their healthcare coverage.

As the number of individuals losing Medicaid continues to rise, it is crucial for policymakers and healthcare providers to address this issue promptly and find solutions to ensure that those in need have access to the healthcare services they require.

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