Texas Removed Millions from Medicaid

 

Despite Persistent Warnings, Texas Rushed to Remove Millions From Medicaid. That Move Cost Eligible Residents Care.

Records show that Texas ignored Medicaid enrollment guidance and warnings. Here are more findings from our investigation with The Texas Tribune:   Texas has stripped Medicaid coverage from 2 million people, most of them children. After the COVID-19 public health emergency ended, states were free to “unwind” people off Medicaid. Texas moved aggressively. More than 1 million lost coverage for bureaucratic reasons, like failing to return a form, not because they weren’t eligible. Disenrollment mistakes were preventable and foreshadowed by warnings from the federal government, whistleblowers and advocates. Texas is under federal investigation for its long Medicaid enrollment waits. One expert said Texas’ unwinding stance was, “We don’t do anything illegal, but we want to get our program as fast as we can down to what it was before the pandemic.”    Some Texas families that lost Medicaid coverage during the unwinding are also waiting more than a month for food assistance because the state uses the same eligibility system to process both applications. “It’s felt like a one-two punch,” said one food bank CEO. Are you caught in Texas’ Medicaid and food stamp application backlog? Do you know someone who is? Help us report on these issues.

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