More than 900,000 Floridians could soon lose their Medicaid health insurance after a federal waiver for the COVID-19 pandemic expired. Now the state is reviewing eligibility -- and trying to minimize the number of people who are dropped from the program.
Florida’s Medicaid program grew from 3.8 million beneficiaries in January 2020 to about 5.5 million beneficiaries last March. Now the program is slated to shrink.
Tracy Melin is with the Big Bend Area Health Education Center. She says up to 60 percent of the Floridians who will be terminated from Medicaid are eligible for subsidized private coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
“If they’re going to be terminated, they go to Healthcare.gov to fill out an application. And that can be confusing," she says. "And so they may need a navigator to help them, and if they reach out to us at Big Bend AHEC, we can meet with them one-on-one, via Zoom or in person, and set up an application together, answer questions, and then compare plans and help them make an informed decision for their health insurance.”
Melin says another option is Florida KidCare, for which the Legislature just expanded eligibility. Those income limits are now 300 percent of the federal poverty level, as of January 2024.
She also says beneficiaries should update their contact information on ACCESS—the system used by the state to communicate with Medicaid recipients.
“And then watch your mail," she says. "They will be reaching out to you initially through snail mail, but also through email, phone, text message--look for those things. And if you get a request for information, answer."
