Arizona began Medicaid eligibility redeterminations in April, and the state will review 2.5 million individuals over the course of 12 months, with the COVID-19 override group set to be completed in nine months. Health leaders provided updates on the process at the 2023 Arizona State of Reform Health Policy Conference.
Matt Jewett, director of health policy for the Children’s Action Alliance, said the group has invested in billboards and advertising to inform individuals of the redetermination process. The alliance has also been encouraging individuals to sign up for phone and email alerts from the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), the state’s Medicaid agency.
Jewett said the alliance is collaborating with the Covered Arizona Coalition for individuals who have been disenrolled. Jewett said individuals can visit the Covered Arizona Coalition’s website, where they can enter their zip code and preferred language, and receive a list of community assistants for obtaining alternate healthcare coverage.
“We’ve been doing this in Arizona years before the (Affordable Care Act). We have one application that works for (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)—formerly known as food stamps—and (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) cash assistance, and health insurance,” Jewett said.
Kristen Challacombe, deputy director of business operations at AHCCCS, said that so far, AHCCCS has completed and approved 32 percent of the state’s Medicaid members’ eligibility, while 11 percent of those reviewed have been disenrolled.
“We have 40 percent left to complete—just over a million [individuals]—and then 17 percent are in the process of being redetermined at present.”
— Challacombe
Challacombe said there’s an issue that needs to be resolved, however. She questioned why individuals and families were not completing Medicaid renewals within the 30-day renewal period.
“They will be discontinued and then, depending on that 90-day period when they complete the renewal packet, [if] it is completed in that 90-day grace period, then they don’t have to start a new application—that’s the advantage,” Challacombe said. “But we still lose coverage potentially, depending on when you complete the application.”
Challacombe said AHCCCS will be focusing on minimizing gaps in coverage, and ensuring people are responding to requests for information within 30 days.
“We’d like to see people who are eligible not lose coverage.”
— Challacombe
According to Challacombe, the majority of procedural disenrollments are due to individuals being over the income eligibility limit. She said AHCCCS will continue to conduct outreach via phone, email, and mail to assist members with their renewal process.