BOISE, Idaho — Are you and your children currently insured through Medicaid? You might want to double-check. Thousands of adults and children have been unenrolled from Medicaid since the Covid-19 Public Health Emergency lifted.
Idaho started the process of renewing and dis-enrolling children and adults from Medicaid, causing more than 44,000 kids in Idaho to lose insurance coverage.
"During the pandemic, the state couldn't remove anyone from Medicaid. Now the state is required to review everyone's eligibility," said Hillarie Hagen, Health Policy Associate with Idaho Voices for Kids.
For the first time in three years, people are losing their coverage, including 1-in-4 kids in Idaho.
Megan Haughton, a local family physician, tells us she is noticing the result, as fewer kids are coming in for checkups. She says that's especially troubling since those appointments are crucial for kids during that first year of life.
"I had a mother that came in and said 'I know this is early, but I need to get this kid in before they lose their Medicaid coverage,'" said Haughton.
Idaho Voices for Children tells Idaho News 6 that many people are being unenrolled without their knowledge, and that many times, they qualify but fail to submit the proper paperwork or assume are no longer eligible.
"Parents often think that if they don't qualify, their children will not qualify, and that's not the case," said Hagen.
National experts say that 3-in-4 kids that lose coverage during this process are still eligible for Medicaid.
Haughton says she's also seeing people struggle to get preventative care when they don't know they have lost their coverage or will be losing it soon.
“As a physician, I recommend certain tests or certain referrals. They ask how much is that going to cost me, and sometimes that is a barrier to getting people the health care they need," said Haughton.
Following the lift of the Covid-19 Public Health Emergency, Idaho chose to begin the process of returning to regular Medicaid rules on the earliest time frame that was allowed. Renewals began on February 1, and dis-enrollments began in April.
Local Health advocates tell us we will see the number of those uninsured increase within the next month.
For more eligibility information or to enroll, see the Medicaid website.
