Statement of ACAP CEO Margaret A. Murray on Streamlined Enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, September 1, 2022

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Jeff Van Ness; jvanness@communityplans.net, (202) 204-7515

STATEMENT OF ACAP CEO MARGARET A. MURRAY ON STREAMLINED ENROLLMENT IN MEDICAID AND CHIP

WASHINGTON—Today, Margaret A. Murray, CEO of the Association for Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP), issued the following statement on draft regulations recently released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) entitled “Streamlining the Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Basic Health Program Application, Eligibility Determination, Enrollment, and Renewal Processes”:

“Upon reading the draft regulation, our first thought is simply this: it’s about time.

“A streamlined renewal process is something that ACAP has advocated for years. Redetermination processes should be about accurately determining eligibility – not about slimming down Medicaid rolls through bureaucratic red tape.

“Consumers would particularly benefit from streamlined enrollment once the COVID-19 public health emergency is brought to a close and states unwind the maintenance-of-effort provisions.”

“We look forward to reviewing the draft regulation in detail and providing feedback to CMS – but early returns indicate that this is a long-overdue step in the right direction. Several steps, in fact. We applaud CMS for their leadership in this area.”

About ACAP:
ACAP represents 74 health plans, which collectively provide health coverage to more than 20 million people. Safety Net Health Plans serve their members through Medicaid, Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Marketplace and other publicly sponsored health programs. For more information, visit www.communityplans.net.

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