Are you enrolled in AHCCCS? You may be at risk of losing coverage in Arizona – The Arizona Republic
Thousands of Arizonans are at risk of losing health coverage provided through Medicaid, but there are steps enrollees can take to prevent it from happening.
An estimated 500,000 Arizonans out of 2.37 million enrolled are at risk of losing their Medicaid coverage, according to officials with the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, which is Arizona’s Medicaid program.
A federal law that gave some state Medicaid programs, including Arizona, enhanced funding during the COVID-19 pandemic also prevented them from dropping anyone from either traditional Medicaid or from the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which in Arizona is called KidsCare.
But that freeze on disenrolling anyone from Medicaid was always set to stop once the federal public health emergency ends. That is expected to happen in the next few months, though the exact date is unknown.
“Soon, Medicaid and KidsCare disenrollments will begin again,” says a March 15 AHCCCS news release. “This means some people with Medicaid or KidsCare coverage could be disenrolled from those programs because they no longer meet financial or medical eligibility requirements.”
Millions of Americans across the U.S. who are enrolled in Medicaid could be affected, and a March 9 analysis from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Urban Institute found that people losing Medicaid coverage after the public health emergency ends will be at risk of becoming uninsured.
Arizonans enrolled in AHCCCS are at risk of either no longer meeting eligibility criteria once the public health emergency ends or of being disenrolled because they have not responded to the agency’s requests for additional information, AHCCCS spokeswoman Heidi Capriotti said.
“Members will only be disenrolled if they no longer meet eligibility requirements or do not respond to our requests for more information through the renewal process,” Capriotti wrote in an email.
Here are three ways for people enrolled in AHCCCS to make sure they don’t lose coverage:
Ensure that their mailing address, phone number and email address on file are correct by logging on to www.healthearizonaplus.gov (or by calling Health-e-Arizona Plus at 855-HEA-PLUS (855-432-7587), Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.).Check their mailbox for a letter from AHCCCS about renewal of coverage.Respond to any requests from AHCCCS for more information so the agency can accurately determine eligibility.
Anyone who earns too much money to qualify for AHCCCS may be eligible for subsidized private health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Buy ACA insurance through healthcare.gov or CuidadoDeSalud.gov or at 800-318-2596.
Licensed and certified health insurance navigators and certified application counselors in both English and Spanish can offer help free of charge to Arizonans. Information is available by calling Cover Arizona at 800-377-3536 or by going to www.coveraz.org.
Reach the reporter at Stephanie.Innes@gannett.com or at 602-444-8369. Follow her on Twitter @stephanieinnes.
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