The data shows that 53.2% of those who have been disenrolled from MediCal within the eligibility revocation process are Latinos, one in three of the more than 225,000 Californians disenrolled from this statewide health coverage program. California. But they still have time to send their yellow renewal packet to the county to see if they still qualify, or if there are any options available through the state insurance marketplace Covered California.
“For us, that 117,849 is a very large number that will continue to grow,” said Dr. Seciah Aquino of the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California dDuring the video conference: “Protecting Health Care Benefits for 15.5 Million: California Commits to Keeping MediCal Enrollees Insured,” Hosted by Ethnic Media Services.
He pointed out that this is not right because Latinos and other communities of color are just recovering from the devastating pandemic.
“May statistics from the California Department of Public Health revealed that 42,000 Latinos were killed by covid, and more than 4 million Latinos became ill.
“What we have heard is that people do not understand the changes and the logistics of renewal because many Latinos have two or three jobs. They are busy. So it’s hard to take time to look at the mail and don’t know what the next step is after you get a text.”
Therefore, he warned that it is very important to communicate to Latinos the logistics of renewals in their language.
“Our Latino community is not monolithic, it is diverse and we have many Mesoamerican indigenous communities. We need to increase language diversity, beyond Spanish,” he said.
Beginning in June 2023 and ending in May 2024, more than 15 million Medi-Cal recipients (one-third of state residents) will be determined for eligibility as part of the “great rollback” of MediCare enrollees that is taking place across the country.
Let’s remember that during the pandemic the MediCal renewal process was suspended, but in June it was reactivated and beneficiaries have to apply every year to see if they are still eligible according to their income.
Yingjia Huang, deputy director of health benefits and eligibility for the Department of Health Care Services, said they are reviewing the eligibility of the 15 million enrollees in California.
“We are using this moment to really make significant changes that will make it easier for our members to stay covered next year and beyond.”
He said that at the same time, they are signing up new members.
“It is very important to us to provide them with the resources to help them transition to other programs if they are not eligible.”
He specified that June was the first month that they began to remove people from the MediCal program.
“In sum, California has terminated 21% of its members. A relatively low number compared to other states. Just to put in context, in June we had over a million people ready to be retested to see if they could continue to qualify for MediCal, and it is anticipated that every month, we will have a similar volume.”
He observed that those who have unsubscribed have been because they have not returned their renewal package.
“As many of you may remember, MediCal is sending a renewal packet and a yellow envelope.”
So a large portion, between 20 and 21% that is 225,000 individuals were discharged because they did not return their package to the county to be processed.
“It is very important that they know that even though they were discharged for not returning the yellow medical packet, they have 90 days from June to September 30 to return it and get their MediCal back.”
He said those who were disenrolled because they are no longer eligible for MediCal can be helped to transition to Covered California programs without as much administrative burden.
“We have taken unprecedented actions to keep our members covered by working with nonprofits and schools to get students to show their parents they need to complete their eligibility packet.”
So he reiterated that they should check their text messages and emails because the counties are going to look at them to determine their eligibility.
“We are committed to doing everything possible so that everyone has health coverage.”
Jessica Altman, president of Covered California, the state’s insurance marketplace, said the state is very well positioned to help people keep their health coverage.
“We are very proud to have reduced the uninsured rate from 17.5% before the Affordable Care Act to 7.5%, the largest reduction of any state in the nation.”
He stressed that the goal is to keep everyone who is eligible in MediCal, but when they’re not, Covered California is there to help them transition to other health plans with very low or no monthly premiums.
“In fact, early data shows that about a third of those coming from MediCal are finding $0 monthly premiums with Covered California.
“Nearly 90% of our members receive financial help, and two-thirds are eligible to pay $10 or less per month for their health insurance.”
Louise McCarthy, president of the Los Angeles County Association of Community Clinics, pointed out that they serve 1.89 million Angelenos each year, 64% of them with MediCal.
“It’s really important for community health centers to help their patients maintain ongoing coverage so they can access services, especially those who are in the middle of getting referrals to see a specialist.”
He noted that of the 15 million MediCal enrollees in California, 4.4 million are in Los Angeles County.
“Counties are the gateway for enrollment in Medical, Medicare, Calfresh, CalWorks and other assistance programs for immigrants. That’s why determining eligibility and expanding MediCal will test the ability of county departments and partners like health centers to help people stay covered.”
He added that the source of success will be having human, financial and technical resources to support these efforts.
Mayra Alvarez, president of the organization Children’s Partnershipspecified that of the 15 million who depend on MediCal, 5.7 million are children.
“Almost 60% of children in California depend on MediCal; and 70% of those enrolled are minority children.”
Hence, he said they want to make sure that the necessary steps are taken so that the health coverage continues.
“Our Department of Health Care Services estimates that 2.3 million people on MediCal will lose their coverage, and we estimate that up to a million children will be left without health protection.”
As a result, he said it’s critical that the county, community clinics and community organizations work so families know where to look for help so they and their children don’t go without health coverage.