OVER 8 MILLION HAVE LOST MEDICAID COVERAGE
As of October 12, over 8.6 million Medicaid enrollees have lost coverage, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation. 35% of those who completed the renewal process were disenrolled and 15.4 million enrollees were able to qualify for renewed coverage. The large range of disenrollment rates in each state varies, with the highest of 66% being in Texas and the lowest of 11% in Illinois. Out of all states with available data, 72% of all those disenrolled were due to procedural reasons.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) continues to run their fall Beyond the Basics webinar series which provides training for assisters to prepare. The next webinar will be on October 17 and will provide an overview of barriers to enrollment and strategies to overcome these blocks when supporting people who are immigrants and their families enrolling in health coverage programs. For a complete list of the dates and times for the entire webinar series, check out our news item which also has links for the slides and video recording of webinars which have been archived.
Young Invincibles are hosting an October Assister Webinar series with four webinars focused on outreach for navigators. The next webinar on October 19 will provide in person and digital outreach strategies and the last webinar on October 26 will look at reaching out to marginalized communities.
![[Alt Text: Woman in powerchair. Text reads: “Open Enrollment starts November 1! Checklist – medical screenings, prescriptions, immunizations, mental healthcare, medical devices, rehabilitative/habilitative services.”]](https://nationaldisabilitynavigator.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Newsletter-Images-1.png)
Open enrollment starts on November 1! Between November 1 and January 15, enrollees can enroll in a Marketplace health insurance plan with no “pre-existing condition” getting in the way of coverage. For assisters aiding people with disabilities with enrollment decisions, review NDNRC’s disability guide and previous factsheets.
Medical debt affects nearly 100 million individuals in the U.S. and can lead to at-risk populations losing their home or a part of their paycheck. The CHIRblog has been reviewing gaps in the federal framework of medical debt protection. The key findings were varied standards of financial assistance standards and only a few states regulating billing/collection practices.
The Commonwealth Fund reviewed rules around short-term health insurance plans in their blog, noting that the current administration’s proposed rules of tightening coverage would not have a major impact on nongroup coverage or those who are uninsured. Instead, it will strengthen Marketplace plans that offer nongroup coverage.
Archives of our weekly updates are available on the NDNRC website.