CMS Releases New Resources for States for Public Health Emergency Unwinding Period

Yesterday, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released two new resources to help CMS and states monitor enrollment and renewal efforts as states resume routine Medicaid operations following the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE).

• The first resource is the State Report on Plans for Prioritizing and Distributing Renewals Following the End of the Medicaid Continuous Enrollment Provisions. This tool is to be used by states in submitting their plans to CMS on how they will process Medicaid renewals during the unwinding period.
• The second resource is the Unwinding Eligibility and Enrollment Data Report Excel Workbook and Specifications Document. This tool is to be used by states to report their efforts on certain metrics that demonstrate their progress towards restoring timely application processing and initiating and completing renewals of eligibility for all Medicaid.

States have been required to maintain enrollment of nearly all Medicaid enrollees as a condition of receiving a temporary 6.2 percentage point Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) increase under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). When the PHE declaration expires, states will have a 12-month unwinding period to return to normal eligibility and enrollment operations.