Issue Briefs , Reports | Mar 29, 2016

Medicaid and the Indian Health Service: New Guidance Explains How States May Secure Additional Federal Funds

Deborah Bachrach, Patricia Boozang, and Julian Polaris, Manatt Health

Recent guidance released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in February 2016 increases the range of Medicaid services and providers for which states may claim full federal funding.  States with significant American Indian and/or Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations stand to benefit from this increased federal Medicaid funding.  This issue brief, developed by Manatt Health, summarizes the new policy expanding federal funding for state Medicaid services provided to AI/AN populations, and explains the ways in which these additional funds reduce the cost of Medicaid expansion for states.  This issue brief is part of a continuing series investigating the fiscal implications of Medicaid expansion.


Expert Perspectives

June 16, 2022

Leveraging Section 1902(e)(14) Waiver Authority Amid Unwinding

The unwinding related section 1902(e)(14) strategies newly available to Medicaid and CHIP agencies can provide significant relief to states facing pending eligibility and enrollment actions and processing delays, workforce and systems limitations, and other operational challenges. Ensuring eligible individuals do not lose coverage for procedural or administrative reasons and supporting those who are ineligible for Medicaid/CHIP transition to Marketplace coverage will be paramount for all states as they begin to resume normal operations when the federal public health emergency (PHE) ends. This expert perspective outlines the time-limited targeted enrollment flexibilities that CMS has availed to states through section 1902(e)(14) waiver authority and discusses considerations beyond the strategies described in federal guidance and supplemental resources.

June 15, 2022

Using Marketplace Retroactive Coverage to Facilitate Continuous Enrollment in the Public Health Emergency Unwinding

Providing a retroactive coverage option in the Marketplace is one innovative strategy for eliminating coverage gaps between Medicaid and Marketplace coverage for people eligible to make that transition at the end of the public health emergency. Pennsylvania’s state-based Marketplace, Pennie, is considering an optional retroactive coverage policy. This expert perspective describes the retroactive coverage policy innovation and its benefits, and offers strategies for states to consider in their implementation that will maximize coverage continuity, minimize adverse selection, and address potential operational challenges.