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Approximately 695,600 Illinois residents have proactively renewed their Medicaid coverage — making Illinois the top ranked state for renewals amid a federal cleanse of the government-backed health insurance rolls.
Medicaid recipients are required to annually file paperwork verifying their income and other eligibility requirements in order to keep the coverage, a process known as determination.
That requirement was dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing for continuous coverage.
But with the pandemic emergency over, so is the feds’ policy of constant coverage. Illinois resumed determination in June.
Health care advocates sounded the alarm that reinstating the redetermination process could leave many uninsured; the Kaiser Family Foundation estimates the number nationally could reach 24 million.
In some states, that’s coming to fruition.
According to new data from the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Medicaid Enrollment and Unwinding Tracker, midway through the process, Texas has a disenrollment rate of 62%.
Illinois is on the other end, tying with Maine for a disenrollment rate of 10%. Midway through the purge of rolls, 75,000 Illinois residents have disenrolled.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker credit’s the state’s “Ready to Renew” campaign and “Are You Covered” messaging, which sought to spread the word that keeping Medicaid would entail paperwork, with preserving coverage.
There’s no set deadline for renewal in Illinois; redetermination is done on a rolling basis. But forms must be completed by their due date in order to avoid an insurance gap.
Illinois will reinstate coverage to those who miss their deadline if the information is submitted within 90 days.
The paperwork can be confusing, and a family that has moved may not receive renewal notices.
“I am so proud of the hard work and preparation that’s gone into this massive effort to restart Medicaid eligibility renewals following the public health emergency,” Department of Healthcare and Family Services director Theresa Eagleson said. “Our top priority has been ensuring that customers who remain eligible for Medicaid stay covered.”
Eagleson is stepping down from her post at year’s end.
