Webinars | Jul 12, 2012

“Reasonable” Flexibility: Exploring Models to Help States Resolve Inconsistencies in Income for Medicaid, CHIP and Tax Credit Eligibility Webinar

Manatt Health Solutions – Deborah Bachrach and Kinda Serafi

This webinar offered detailed analysis of the standards under which states can find “reasonable compatibility” of income information provided by applicants for Medicaid, CHIP and the exchanges that is not precisely equivalent. Income data is typically neither static nor centralized, and states must be prepared to resolve discrepancies when income data is submitted by applicants or retrieved from state, federal, or other independent sources. In the case of a discrepancy, CMS eligibility rules provide guidelines to help states proceed with an eligibility determination, including some flexibility for states to find data is “reasonably compatible.” These rules, which will apply to advance premium tax credit (APTC) and cost-sharing requirement (CSR), provide states with critical flexibility to operationalize eligibility decision-making by allowing states to accept small deviations in income data from different sources.

On this July 16, 2012 webinar, Deborah Bachrach and Kinda Serafi of Manatt Health Solutions, walked participants through straw models they have created to help states think through options for reasonable compatibility process flows for Medicaid, CHIP and APTC/CSR income eligibility determinations. Karen Gibson from Minnesota Department of Human Services shared preliminary thinking on planning for implementation of reasonable compatibility standards. In addition, Anne Marie Costello from CMCS and Ben Walker from CCIIO provided reactions and feedback on the models. The webinar was introduced by Chad E. Shearer, Deputy Director of the State Health Reform Assistance Network. Alice Weiss, Co-Director of Maximizing Enrollment, moderated the panel.

Click on the download button for the slide deck used during the webinar and on the link below to hear an archived version of the discussion. An appendix (referred to, but not presented during the webinar) is included at the end of the slideshow to provide illustrative examples and outline Federal requirements.

Reasonable Compatibility Straw Models Webinar

 


Expert Perspectives

January 26, 2021

Finishing the Job of Medicaid Expansion

As the country struggles to respond to and recover from the devastating fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the case for Medicaid expansion has never been stronger. The public health crisis has focused a spotlight on both the benefits of stable health coverage and the gaps in the nation’s system of coverage and care. This expert perspective reviews what Medicaid expansion would mean in the 12 states that have not yet expanded.

January 20, 2021

Ensuring Equity: State Strategies for Monitoring COVID-19 Vaccination Rates by Race and Other Priority Populations

The rollout of vaccines designed to end the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has begun in earnest across the United States. Currently, each state is responsible for determining how to allocate, distribute, track, and report its vaccine allotment from the federal government, although the federal government is expected to take on a larger role under a new Biden administration. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Black, Indigenous, and other people of color have been disproportionately impacted by both higher risks of infection and poorer health outcomes, and many are concerned that an inequitable or inefficient distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine may further widen health inequities among these populations. One way to help ensure the equitable administration of COVID-19 vaccine is to track vaccine administration disaggregated for key subpopulations, such as gender, race and ethnicity, and geography (e.g., urban vs. rural). This expert perspective reviews the data states are currently publicly reporting related to vaccine administration and provides an interactive map that explores the extent to which all 50 states are reporting vaccine administration data breakdowns by age, gender, race, ethnicity, provider type, and level of geography. The expert perspective also discusses what current data sources states are using to provide this information and provides an overview of options states can consider to collect information about the administration of COVID-19 vaccine in populations via survey data.