Kaiser Family Foundation Finds Future of MFP Uncertain If Funding Not Secured

A long-term renewal of the Money Follows the Person (MFP) program, which has been surviving on a series of short-term extensions, has been a priority issue for ANCOR given its important role in helping people with disabilities voluntarily move from state-run institutions and nursing homes into the community with their family and peers. This week, the Kaiser Family Foundation reported that:

• “With a short-term funding extension set to expire on December 31, 2019, MFP’s future remains uncertain for the 44 states participating in the program, without a longer-term reauthorization by Congress. Twenty percent of MFP states will have exhausted their current funds by the end of 2019, and the vast majority of the remaining states expect to do so during 2020.
• Over one-third of MFP states identified a range of services that they expect to discontinue if federal funding expires, with community transition services most often cited. States also expect that they will not be able to maintain staff and activities focused on enrollee outreach and community housing, which are financed with enhanced federal matching funds.”

ANCOR has been advocating for Congress to include a longer-term funding extension, including through such measures as MFP funding in legislation extending various Medicaid programs (known as the health care extenders bill). We will keep members informed of opportunities for action on this topic.