Two weeks ago, Covered California reported that 58,000 residents had enrolled in ACA exchange coverage during their COVID-19 Special Enrollment Period, of which roughly 20,000 did so via standard SEPs (losing coverage, moving, getting married/divorced, etc), while an additional 38,000 took advantage of the COVID-specific SEP.
Covered California Enrolls Tens of Thousands as Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic Hits California Households
More than 58,000 people have signed up for coverage through Covered California since March 20, when a special-enrollment period was announced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Covered California has seen a tremendous surge in consumers visiting CoveredCA.com and the website’s Medi-Cal page.
The special-enrollment period allows anyone uninsured and eligible to enroll in health care coverage through Covered California to sign up through June 30.
Consumers can enroll in as little as 30 minutes, either through CoveredCA.com or over the phone with the help of one of Covered California’s thousands of Certified Insurance Agents or enrollers.
In addition, Medi-Cal enrollment is open year-round for consumers who qualify.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California announced on Monday that 58,400 people had enrolled in health care coverage since the exchange announced a special- enrollment period in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pace of sign-ups has been nearly three times the level that Covered California saw during the same period in 2019.
One by one, the dozen or so states which had either already implemented work requirement programs for Medicaid expansion enrollees or which were planning on doing so have either "delayed" or dropped those requirements entirely, either by force due to a federal judge ruling against them, or "voluntarily" due to them seeing the writing on the wall and realizing that a federal judge was going to rule against them in the near future.
Every state except one, that is: Utah.
Utah passed ACA Medicaid expansion solidly back in 2018...and they passed a "clean" version, which was supposed to mean anyone earning up to 138% of the Federal Poverty Line would be eligible, and the program wouldn't have any barriers or hurdles like work requirements and so forth.
California Responds to COVID-19 Emergency by Providing Path to Coverage for Millions of Californians
Covered California Expands Special Enrollment and Medi-Cal Seeks Waivers to Encourage Coverage
Effective immediately, anyone uninsured and eligible to enroll in health care coverage through Covered California can sign up through the end of June.
The Department of Health Care Services announces new steps to help those eligible for Medi-Cal sign up easily and get immediate coverage.
The moves come amid widespread disruption in the lives and livelihoods of Californians as public health officials seek to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
All medically necessary screening and testing for COVID-19 are free of charge, and all health plans available through Medi-Cal and Covered California offer telehealth options.
These actions build on increased state subsidies and the implementation of a state penalty, both of which took effect in January 2020
Last week I noted that House Democrats introduced the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which includes a whole mess of important measures to deal with the economic and public health crisis fallout of the global pandemic. This act is by no means all that's needed, but it's an important start. The bill included, among other things, additional/emergency funding for:
(sigh) Honestly not sure why I'm bothering posting this. Anyone who doesn't understand that the only promises Trump keeps are the racist, xenophobic, homophobic, misogynistic, antisemitic and corrupt ones by this point is either a complete idiot or willfully ignorant:
The Trump administration wants to slash billions of dollars in federal support from Medicaid, food stamps and other safety net programs for the poor, while largely sparing the Medicare program that benefits seniors.
Trump administration finalizing Medicaid block grant plan targeting Obamacare
The plan is guaranteed to enrage critics and invite attacks from Democrats in an election year.
The Trump administration is finalizing a plan to let states convert a chunk of Medicaid funding to block grants, even as officials remain divided over how to sell the controversial change to the safety net health program.
CMS Administrator Seema Verma plans to issue a letter soon explaining how states could seek waivers to receive defined payments for adults covered by Obamacare's Medicaid expansion, according to seven people with knowledge of the closely guarded effort. An announcement is tentatively slated for the end of next week, more than one year after Verma and her team began developing the plan.
TOPEKA, Kan. (KWCH) Gov. Laura Kelly and Republican leadership announce an agreement on Medicaid expansion in Kansas.
During a press conference on Thursday, the governor said the program would be funded by the hospital administrative fee. At this time, it's unknown if that fee would be passed on to patients.
Kelly said the hospitals have endorsed the program.
Kansas Senate GOP Majority Leader Jim Denning said the bill would be pre-filed on Thursday with 22 co-sponsors.
If passed in the Kansas Senate and House, the full expansion would go into effect no later than Jan. 1.
(Obviously that's January 1st of 2021 at this point, of course)
Here's some live tweeting of the event by a Kansas-based political reporter:
