Skip to content
  • Home
  • Medical Supplies
  • Medical Insurance
  • Healthy Lifestyle
  • Medical Treatment
  • Healthy Diet
  • Healthy Parenting
  • About Us
cdnaas

cdnaas

everything health

300K Oregonians may soon lose health coverage

Posted on February 13, 2022 By Sharika Soukup

The Oregon Health Authority is currently crafting plans to ensure that thousands of people don’t suddenly lose their coverage.

PORTLAND, Ore — With the COVID-19 public health emergency likely ending in the coming months, 300,000 Oregonians are set to lose their Medicaid coverage.

Throughout the pandemic, Oregon has maintained a continuous enrollment policy and did not drop anyone from the rolls during annual renewals, as provided under the Family First Coronavirus Recovery Act that Congress passed in March 2020.

The Oregon Health Plan grew by 300,000 to 1.2 million, helping Oregon achieve the highest rate of insurance coverage ever, at 95.4% in 2021. Far fewer people cycled on and off the program, with the “high churn” population dropping from 34% in September 2019 to just 8%.

The greatest coverage gains were among low-income adults making between 138% and 401% of the federal poverty level. Now 25,000 people per month could lose coverage.

The Oregon Health Authority is currently crafting plans to ensure that thousands of people don’t suddenly lose their coverage, said Jeremy Vandehey, director of Health Policy and Analytics at OHA. Vandehey testified Wednesday before the House Committee on Health Care, which will consider various strategies, including an affordable public option insurance plan, which the state was already moving toward.

RELATED: Here’s how COVID hospitalizations compare to the worst year for flu infections in recent memory

“Making sure we don’t go backwards as a state is the challenge ahead of us,” Vandehey said. “We’re continuing to talk to (the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) and will be advocating for flexibility and creating paths to land folks softly into a new program that provides continuous coverage.”

The change won’t occur until the federal public health emergency ends, and the timing on that is unclear. The Omicron variant seems to be running its course, though cases and hospitalizations remain high.

Vandehey said OHA will do aggressive outreach to enrollees on an unprecedented scale. OHA could phase in the eligibility redeterminations for all 1.2 million people on Medicaid and place those at highest risk at the end of the process, he said. Often people are dropped from the program simply because they haven’t updated their contact information or returned their paperwork.

“You talk about a soft handoff or transitional process, and I want to make sure we really educate folks and they understand what that really means,” said Rep. Teresa Alsonso Leon.

Such a large-scale drop in coverage could affect hospitals’ bottom lines, as fewer insured patients would translate to an increase in charity care.

“This is an all-hands-on-deck situation,” Sean Kolmer, senior vice president of policy and strategy for the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, said during the public hearing.

Read more at the Portland Business Journal.

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/health/oregonians-health-coverage-public-health-emergency/283-e979240c-6cf9-426f-8db8-76156c7cc3c5

Medical Treatment Tags:300K, Coverage, Health, lose, Oregonians

Post navigation

Previous Post: Health Care Workers Change Their Minds on COVID-19 Vaccines
Next Post: Fralin Biomedical Research Institute scientists to discuss the science of healthy lifestyle choices in public seminar | VTx

More Related Articles

De Blasio admin’s $34B health insurance contract doesn’t add up Medical Treatment
Patients stranded out of network as health insurance contract talks collapse Medical Treatment
The 411 on Sexual Well being Dietary supplements Medical Treatment
Free Covid-19 tests are only “free” if you can figure out insurance reimbursement Medical Treatment
The Significance of Scientific Trial Participation for African American citizens With Colorectal Most cancers Medical Treatment
Do Porcelain Veneers Assist Reinforce Your Oral Well being? Medical Treatment

Recent Posts

  • Is Invisalign Protected Below Dental Coverage?
  • Gains Of A Nutritious Lifestyle
  • An Insight Into the Distinctive Sectors of the Health care Market
  • Healthful Life Recommendations – How to Guide a Pleased Wholesome Existence
  • Clinical Billing Software program and HIPAA Guidelines in Tiny Clinical Place of work

Archives

  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021

Copyright © 2023 cdnaas.

Powered by PressBook Green WordPress theme