THIS TIME ON CODE WACK!
We’re taking a closer look at what the millions of people being kicked off Medicaid can do about it. What’s being done to help them? And what else could we do to make sure people don’t get stranded without health insurance coverage?
To find out, we spoke to Loretta Alexander, health policy director of Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. Ms. Alexander has over 40 years of experience in health care. This is the first episode in a two-part series with Loretta.
SHOW NOTES
WE DISCUSS
What options do families and children have who have been dis-enrolled from Medicaid for procedural reasons, such as not submitting needed forms on time?
“They have several options.
“One of the first things they need to do is to send the paperwork on in, even if it’s past the deadline. And the policy says that if you send the paperwork back in, then the agency has the option of reinstating that case without you having to start from scratch as a new application.
“Another option they have is to request a fair hearing, an appeal. If you think you’re still eligible, you can request a fair hearing for your termination and there’s an option on the form to check and say, ‘I want my benefits to stay in place until the end of the fair hearing.’ Okay?” – Loretta Alexander
How is that process working out for Medicaid beneficiaries?
“… right now there’s a backlog of cases that are needing fair hearings.
“…And one of the things that the state cited in their plan of action – each state had to develop a plan and submit it to the federal government – what they call an unwinding plan, and unwinding meaning ‘going back to regular operations.’
“So one of the things that they cite in their plan was that they were going to have to hire more people to work the fair hearings because they already knew that they were going to increase. I don’t know if that happened or not..” – Loretta Alexander
What else complicates the re-enrollment process?
“… [People] go to the Department of Human Services and they apply for Medicaid, but then the Medicaid program has contracts with private insurance to provide services for those people that are in that category under the Medicaid expansion.
“So they may have a Blue Cross card, or they may have an Ambetter card, which are private insurance cards. So when the state says, ‘Okay, make sure your Medicaid information is up to date.’ They’re thinking, ‘I don’t have a Medicaid card. I got a Blue Cross card.’
“You see, there are other issues whereby if people are having problems, they may not be willing to go to meetings and talk about it … they may not want other people to know that they’re getting [Medicaid] … some people like to keep their information private and keep what’s going on with themselves private. So every day you learn something new, another nuance about what’s going on.” – Loretta Alexander
Helpful Links
Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF)
Medicare Benefits Wealthy Most, National Bureau of Economic Research
Make this the last year that millionaires stop paying into Social Security before the rest of us, The Hill
The U.S. Physician Shortage Is Only Going to Get Worse. Here Are Potential Solutions, Time
How Medicare Contributes to the Physician Shortage, verywell
Episode Transcript
Read the full episode transcript.
Biography: Loretta Alexander
Loretta Alexander joined Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF) as the Health Policy Director in 2018.
In addition to her internal policy work at AACF, she currently serves on the ACES Steering Committee, Arkansas Act 1220 Child Health Advisory Committee, Natural Wonders Partnership Council, Delta Dental Advocacy Advisory Workgroup, Arkansas Health Equity Collaboration, Arkansas Maternal Health Taskforce, and Excel By Eight Maternal Health Workgroup and Arkansas Birthing Project.
Ms. Alexander has over 40 years of experience in health care, including clinical services, program administration, program evaluation, health policy research and facility administration. Prior experience includes positions as research associate, traumatic brain injury program coordinator, director of a comprehensive child development research demonstration project and Medicaid consultant/coordinator for the Arkansas Governor’s Indigent Healthcare Advisory Council.
Ms. Alexander received a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Henderson State University and a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She completed a post graduate fellowship in hospital administration at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya.
Her community activities include Friends and Families of Care Facility Residents, Conway Human Development Center Parent Association, Global Ties Arkansas and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
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