The Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which prohibits states from de-enrolling Medicaid participants while the public health emergency is in place, was signed into law during the COVID-19 pandemic by former President Donald Trump, especially in California.
Congress averted the public health emergency that would have required states to disenroll Medicaid clients who were qualified for coverage because of COVID-era requirements through an appropriations bill at the end of last year.
The Trump administration also raised Medicaid reimbursements to states during the pandemic, which will eventually end.
California Offers Conventional Medical Treatment
Early in 2022, California discreetly began implementing the proposal, and health insurers and neighborhood organizations raced to offer social services and benefits that go beyond conventional medical treatment.
With 15.5 million users, Medi-Cal is the largest Medicaid program in the nation.
Newsom is betting $12 billion over five years that this social experiment can eventually reduce the program’s growing healthcare costs.
The 23 Medi-Cal managed-care health insurance companies that the state contracts with will handle the work.
They are in charge of providing a slew of new benefits to enrollees who are most at risk, including those who lack stable housing, those who suffer from mental health or addiction issues, those who are reentering society after serving time in prison, seniors, and people with disabilities, kids in foster care, and Californians who frequently visit hospital emergency rooms or short-term skilled nursing facilities.
In addition to ground-breaking social services like healthful home-delivered meals for diabetes patients and mold removal in the homes of patients with severe asthma, the state also offers intense case management to the patients who are most at risk.
Read more: Medicaid Program Faces Uncertain Future As Unwinding Process Begins
The Advocacy of Medicaid for Homeless
The use of Medicaid to help address homelessness and fight chronic disease is an ambitious proposal, according to top state health officials, so they anticipated a rocky rollout.
The state intends to demonstrate the initiative’s efficacy and permanently accept the benefits after 2026 when funding for the initiative expires.
Other states are keenly observing California in the meantime in an effort to learn from its achievements and failings.
Since we are strangers when we first enter someone’s life, we must spend a lot of time getting to know them personally and attending to their needs before they will start to trust us.
Read more: Personal Finance Tips For Gen Z To Avoid Becoming Homeless