Enacted soon after the beginning of the pandemic, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act included a requirement that Medicaid programs in every state, in order to receive enhanced federal funding, keep people on Medicaid who enrolled on or after March 18, 2020, regardless of changes in their circumstances, through the end of the month in which the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) ends.
After more than two years, a recent federal change in the 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), enacted December 29, 2022, broke the link between this continuous enrollment requirement and the end of the PHE. Instead, states are now allowed to end the continuous Medicaid coverage requirement on March 31, 2023 — including, most importantly for our clients, Long-term Care Medicaid, which is the Medicaid program we help our Level 4 clients obtain. Here’s what will happen to people on Medicaid in Virginia and Maryland starting in April (it’s not yet clear whether the District of Columbia is going to follow suit):
- The basic rule has always been that coverage for Medicaid needs to be renewed each year (this is the rule that was suspended near the start of the PHE);
- On March 31, 2023, the Medicaid Departments in Virginia and Maryland will resume full redeterminations of Medicaid eligibility (some letters may be sent out starting as early as March 18, 2023), with possible termination of benefits occurring on or after April 30, 2023;
- Failure to respond to communications about Medicaid eligibility could result in coverage ending.
- For our Level 4 clients who have kept us on retainer through Farr Law Firm’s Lifetime Protection Plan®, we will handle the paperwork involved in filing these LTC Medicaid redeterminations.
Make Sure Your Information is Up-to-Date
Those with Medicaid coverage need to take steps to ensure that they do not miss important communications related to their eligibility redeterminations. If you are a Level 4 Client at the Farr Law Firm, be sure we have your up-to-date email, mailing address, and phone number.
Respond Right Away to Communications About Redetermination!
If you are a Level 4 Client of the Farr Law Firm up-to-date with your Lifetime Protection Plan® membership, all communications from Medicaid should automatically come to our firm on your behalf, but this doesn’t always happen. Accordingly, be on the lookout for emails and phone calls from our firm to discuss your redetermination information. Also, regardless of whether you are up-to-date with your Lifetime Protection Plan® membership, be on the lookout for official mail or email to tell you what you need to do to renew your coverage, and forward these communications to us immediately if you are up-to-date with your Lifetime Protection Plan® membership.
Remember — not responding to requests for information may result in termination of coverage.
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