I recently wrote about problems with the federal government’s suggested definition of “volunteer” in the proposed rule implementing the new law (H.R. 1) passed by Congress that requires patients to meet work/volunteer reporting requirements to maintain Medicaid coverage. The changes in this law are estimated to increase the number of uninsured Americans by 10 million people through 2034. My Georgetown University Center on Children and Families colleagues have also been closely following the implementation of H.R. 1 and flagging problems – most recently how the Trump Administration is inventing new requirements for health coverage never passed by Congress.
There’s another issue with the federal government’s proposed rule that especially affects people covered by Medicaid who happen to live in rural areas and small towns – increasing problems with the US Postal Service significantly affecting mail rural delivery speed and capability. (Reminder that Medicaid plays a larger role in providing health coverage to people living in small towns and rural communities than it does in metropolitan areas.)
In its proposed rule implementing multiple new paperwork reporting and notice requirements, the federal government acknowledges several times that the vast majority (75%) of people getting health coverage through Medicaid rely on the U.S. Postal Service to receive critical notices about their Medicaid coverage rather than electronically. (See DHHS proposed interim final rule here and here and here.) This shouldn’t be a surprise – important health coverage communications in the private health insurance industry (like explanations of benefits or EOBs) are currently typically sent by US mail as well.
This reliance by the Medicaid program on the US Postal Service for sending and receiving paperwork related to work reporting requirements, possible hardship exemptions to work reporting requirements and other related issues will directly impact a person’s ability to keep their Medicaid coverage. The stakes are high. Those who don’t respond in a timely fashion to a Medicaid notice or send in the appropriate paperwork may lose their Medicaid coverage even though they meet all of the requirements for coverage.
Add your first comment to this post