As Medicaid review continues, many Virginians have lost coverage for procedural reasons

Since the start of April, nearly 140,000 Virginians have lost Medicaid coverage as part of the state’s return to normal enrollment processes following the end of the COVID-19 federal public health emergency.

For the past three years, anyone enrolled in Medicaid was allowed to keep their coverage regardless of whether or not they still met eligibility requirements. According to the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services’ Medicaid unwinding renewal dashboard, nearly 400,000 enrollees reviewed so far have kept their coverage.

This “unwinding” process is meant to terminate coverage for enrollees who are no longer eligible due to reasons such as exceeding monthly income limits. However, data from health care nonprofit KFF, formerly known as the Kaiser Family Foundation, shows 43% of people who had lost coverage in Virginia as of June lost it for procedural reasons other than ineligibility.

Procedural reasons for termination of coverage include cases when enrollees don’t submit the necessary paperwork to the state on time.

If DMAS doesn’t have enough information to automatically renew an individual’s coverage, the agency may mail him or her a renewal package asking for additional information. Individuals who do not complete and submit the package within 30 days will have their coverage terminated for failing to renew.

However, Virginia Poverty Law Center analyst Eleanor Sullivan said some Medicaid members have contacted the organization saying they received their renewal package only a few days before the 30-day deadline. This, she said, has made it difficult for them to return the necessary information before their coverage is terminated.