MDHHS renews Medicaid for another 142,000, bringing total to more than 1.4 million

LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) renewed Medicaid and Healthy Michigan Plan coverage for an additional 142,296 people whose eligibility was up for redetermination in February, bringing the total to more than 1.4 million.

The department is continuing its efforts to maintain Medicaid coverage for eligible Michiganders. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people continued to receive Medicaid coverage without having to renew annually under the Families First Coronavirus Act. The federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 ended the pause on annual redeterminations. Michigan reinstated the renewal process beginning in May 2023.

"Maintaining health care coverage for as many residents as possible has been our goal. I'm pleased we've been able to renew Medicaid and Healthy Michigan Plan coverage for more than 1.4 million people so far," said MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel. "This has been a collaborative effort with many partners and advocates assisting us by communicating with and informing beneficiaries. I'm grateful for all the work and coordination that has gone into helping make sure those who are eligible retain their benefits."

Over the past several months, MDHHS has used numerous strategies approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to help make the renewal process easier and to reduce the number of residents at risk of losing coverage.

These include:

• Renewing Medicaid eligibility for people receiving benefits under the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program without conducting separate income determinations.
• Permitting managed care plans to assist enrollees in completing renewal forms.
• Reinstating eligibility for people who were disenrolled for procedural reasons and are subsequently redetermined to be eligible for Medicaid during a 90-day reconsideration period.
• Extending renewals to May 2024 for beneficiaries undergoing life-saving treatment, such as dialysis or for cancer.
• Extending automatic reenrollment into a Medicaid managed care plan to up to 120 days.
• Providing beneficiaries an extra month to submit paperwork to avoid loss of health care coverage.

The latest data on Medicaid renewals can be found on MDHHS' online dashboard. The dashboard, which is updated monthly, shows that 1,431,695 million people have been renewed to date. The department is awaiting completed enrollment forms from another 96,699 people who were up for renewal in February and have until the end of March to return paperwork.

There were 12,656 people disenrolled in February because they were no longer eligible and 2,032 whose eligibility was not renewed for procedural reasons, such as not providing verification documents like a driver's license, pay stubs and bank statements. MDHHS can reinstate eligibility back to the termination date for those disenrolled based on a procedural reason and are subsequently found to still be eligible during a 90-day reconsideration period.

MDHHS advises all Medicaid enrollees to check their renewal month and renew online at Michigan.gov/MIBridges. MDHHS will send renewal notices four months before a beneficiary's renewal date and follow up with text messages, phone calls and emails.

Families should return renewal paperwork even if they believe they are no longer eligible for Medicaid. Some members of a household can obtain health care coverage even when others are not eligible. For example, a child may be eligible for MiChild, even if their parent is not eligible for other Medicaid programs. Or some Michiganders may have income that is over the income limit for one program and still be able to obtain health care benefits through another program.

Michiganders who no longer qualify will receive additional information about other affordable health coverage options available, including on HealthCare.gov. Affected Michiganders can shop for and enroll in comprehensive health insurance as they transition away from Medicaid. Many can purchase a plan for less than $10 per month. Michigan Medicaid beneficiaries can learn more, including what they need to do to prepare for renewals, on the Medicaid Benefit Changes website.

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