What Medicaid enrollees are saying about redeterminations

Though states and Medicaid managed care plans are ramping up campaigns to let their members know about upcoming redeterminations, most participants in a focus group conducted by Kaiser Family Foundation said they had not been asked to update their contact information by their Medicaid plan. 

States can begin removing members who are no longer eligible for the program from their rolls as soon as April 1. States have been required to keep Medicaid beneficiaries continuously enrolled in coverage since early 2020, when the public health emergency for COVID-19 was put in place. 

Kaiser Family Foundation interviewed 39 Medicaid beneficiaries in 12 states about their experiences with the upcoming redeterminations process. A summary of the focus groups' findings was published March 9. 

Here are seven key findings to note: 

1. Among the focus group participants, there was little knowledge that they were continuously enrolled during the pandemic. According to KFF, some states communicated this to their enrollees, but many did not. 
   
   
2. Almost all of the participants said they did not know they could be disenrolled from coverage as soon as April 1. All of the participants said they would try to renew their coverage. 
   
   
3. Most participants said they chose to receive information from Medicaid through multiple channels, including mail, email and text messages. 
   
   
4. Most of the focus group participants said they had not been asked by their Medicaid agency to update their contact information to prepare for the redeterminations process. 
   
   
5. Focus group participants said they wanted to receive communications about redetermination requirements through multiple channels. 
   
   
6. For participants that had renewed their Medicaid coverage before, most said the process was relatively easy, especially in recent years. 
   
   
7. If they lose Medicaid coverage, most participants said they would look for coverage options on the ACA exchange or through their employer. Some said they could obtain coverage through their work but were concerned the premiums would be unaffordable. 

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