Over the past 30 years, I’ve worked with thousands of young children in Minneapolis as an occupational therapist. Through our programs at The Family Partnership, I meet with children who are lagging behind in their developmental milestones including language, motor, cognitive, social-emotional and behavioral skills – milestones that have been more challenging to reach because of the pandemic. Our goal at The Family Partnership is to help every child become as functional and independent as they can be.
Most of the children we work with access developmental therapies and other health care thanks to Medicaid and MinnesotaCare, just like 42% of children statewide. Yet many children face the risk of losing coverage and their families and caregivers may not even realize it.
On March 31 the continuous enrollment provision for Medicaid came to an end, which means families need to renew their eligibility for the first time since 2020. During the pandemic, federal law allowed all states, including Minnesota, to postpone annual eligibility reviews. However, as this provision unwinds, 1.5 million Minnesotans will be required once again to verify their eligibility and renew their coverage each year.
Problems with workforce staffing and readiness, out-of-date enrollee contact information, language barriers and other hindrances including housing instability could result in massive coverage losses and gaps beginning August 1, 2023. Experts at the Minnesota Department of Human Services estimate that 15% to 30% of enrollees may lose coverage. Of those, approximately 30-50% will likely re-enroll but may experience gaps in coverage that would be detrimental to families depending on Medicaid for necessary health care services.
For young children in developmental therapies, losses or gaps in coverage will derail hard-won progress. Early childhood is a critical time for brain development and sets the foundation for lifelong outcomes in health, relationships and careers. For children with developmental delays, repetition and consistency are particularly important to therapeutic success. Disruptions can lead to “cascading consequences” in a child’s life including lower academic achievement and challenging interpersonal relations.
[image_caption]Sandy Klein-Mirviss[/image_caption]
That is why we need all teachers, physicians, social workers and other adults who work with children and families to help amplify this information. The more families who know how to stay enrolled, the less children will lose access to therapy, prescriptions and other health care services.
You can help families find support for eligibility renewals by sharing the Renew My Coverage page from the Minnesota Department of Human Services at mn.gov/dhs/renewmycoverage/, where you can:
- Report address and phone number changes
- Look up when your renewal takes place
- Learn what to do when you receive renewal paperwork in the mail
- Get text messages when you need to take action
- Access support from your health plan or navigator
- Find contact information for your county or tribal agency
The Family Partnership is currently working with clients to update contact information and understand the renewal process and help all community members find support for their questions.
This Medicaid eligibility renewal effort requires all hands-on deck. For as many Minnesotans who are enrolled in Medical Assistance, there are many more of us who work and live alongside enrollees. By staying informed and amplifying resources, we can protect eligible families from loss of coverage – and help children build the skills they need to thrive.
Sandy Klein-Mirviss is the director of Developmental Therapies at The Family Partnership, a 144-year-old Minneapolis nonprofit providing services and advocacy in early childhood, mental health, family home visiting and anti-sex trafficking.
Teachers? I think they have enough on their plate without adding “monitor students’ Medicaid eligibility”.
Seriously? You had to find a way to make a negative comment in an article devoted to maintaining healthcare for kids? Have you no soul?
The author wrote nothing about teachers “monitoring” anything. She simply encouraged them – and others – to publicize and share info. The teachers I know have souls – and hearts – and will gladly do this.
The teachers I know are overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated. But sure, let’s give them another task.
It’s great that organizations like thae family partnership are helping families maintain access to healthcare. But it really underscores how ridiculous our process of delivering healthcare is.
You have to be eligible for Medicaid, it is not “free health care “. Medicaid is paid for by taxpayers, as with all Government programs, needs guide rails to stop abuse and make sure folks qualify. 71+ million are enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP programs, Trying to sell America doesn’t take care of the poor is getting old and extremely tiring.
“Trying to sell America doesn’t take care of the poor is getting old and extremely tiring.”
Not only does America fail the poor, America creates more poor. The way we deliver healthcare is a significant contributor to the problem. Because we mostly deliver health care coverage through private insurance companies, the insurance companies include provisions to ensure they make a profit, like caps on coverage. I.e. if you or a family member incurs costs over the coverage cap, you pay out of pocket, or go without. People trying to pay for healthcare lose their homes paying for healthcare. If the patient is also the primary wage earner, losing a job can mean both loss of income and loss of healthcare. Loss of income often means loss of a place to live. I.e. poverty and homelessness. Every other developed nation delivers higher quality care at lower cost than the US, and have fewer people living in poverty. But some people think we have the best healthcare in the world. That is true for some, but not for all.
42% of Minnesota children are eligible for Medicaid seems like a high number, maybe the Biden/Walz economy isn’t so magical after all.
So people aren’t losing their Medicaid. They are being required to reapply for their eligibility which was part of the process prior to Covid and as recently as 2020. Sounds reasonable.
“Sounds reasonable” Renewing is reasonable. However, Minnesota’s 100% reliance on postal mail using 3 year old addresses is NOT REASONABLE. But that’s what Minnesota does. Minnesota is the only state without an automated telephone application and renewal process. Minnesota may be the only state without an online renewal system. People cannot report changes without calling their county and waiting on hold for HOURS. You cannot report changes in Minnesota online, via email or any other modern way. People in poverty are highly mobile and Minnesota doesn’t have current mailing addresses for folks since renewals haven’t been done for three years. People tell their medical providers, their doctors, their pharmacies, their schools their current addresses. This community stakeholders should step up and remind people to update their addresses so they even get a renewal form. Schools are very involved in Minnesota’s Medicaid program. Schools receive IEP funding for children on MA. Schools also have current contact information for kids. Minnesota has so many barriers that make renewing MA coverage very difficult. These barriers are NOT REASONABLE!
Sounds like something that should have been addressed with one time spending from our $19 billion dollar surplus. It would be a small cost for a big improvement to impact a large population of people.
Minnesota has a terrible track record when it comes to managing large-scale IT projects. The MNLARS and MNSURE rollouts spring to mind. I’d say we’re better off flushing that money away elsewhere.