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A new report commissioned by Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) reveals the devastating impact medical debt has on Missourians. Based on eight focus groups conducted in December 2023, the report,
In a letter Wednesday to Missouri Department of Social Services Director Todd Richardson, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services assessed how well the state is complying with rules for disenrolling people from health insurance programs for poor and disabled people. The average person calling the social services helpline had to wait 48 minutes to talk to someone.
The federal government barred states from kicking anyone off Medicaid during the coronavirus pandemic but, when those protections expire this spring, patients will need to renew their coverage. Advocates and health officials worry that eligible people could drop off the rolls.
In the year after Missouri expanded Medicaid, the state struggled to sign up people for the government-funded health insurance program. Now, more than 1 million Missourians are enrolled. The federal government barred states from kicking anyone off Medicaid during the coronavirus pandemic. But when those protections expire this spring, patients will need to renew their coverage. Advocates and health officials worry that eligible people could drop off the rolls.
Missouri’s Medicaid program is now operating under a CMS-approved mitigation plan, which seeks to curb wait times that reached 115 days in late June — more than double what federal laws allow.