Medicaid recipient? Make sure you're still enrolled!

In recent years, individuals and families here in Havre who receive their health care through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program have not been required to re-enroll annually. During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, or PHE, Congress and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) made sure people with Medicaid and CHIP received continuous coverage, so that individuals and families could count on having health care during the pandemic.

Now that the PHE has ended, it’s time to resume normal operations. That means that state Medicaid agencies are once again helping people renew their eligibility for Medicaid coverage annually.

I’m committed to helping ensure that anyone who is eligible for Medicaid or CHIP does not come off their coverage due to a change of address, failure to receive a form in the mail, or lack of sufficient information about renewal procedures.

If you are covered by Medicaid or have children covered by CHIP, check now to make sure your coverage is active. You can go to Medicaid.gov today to prepare to renew your coverage. HHS has created a “Renew Your Coverage” webpage with links to Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services to get the latest information. If your coverage has lapsed or you haven’t re-enrolled this year:

• Update your contact information with Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services.

• Respond to the Medicaid renewal form when it comes in the mail. If you don’t, you may be disenrolled from your coverage even if you are still eligible!

• And for the parents out there, your children could still be eligible for coverage, so even if you aren’t eligible, respond and make sure your children’s information is updated with your state.

If you are no longer eligible for Medicaid, you should check if you are eligible for health care coverage through your employer or through the Affordable Care Act Marketplace at https://www.healthcare.gov .

Everyone deserves health care, and I want to make sure that people have health care coverage and keep coverage that’s right for them — whether that’s Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, or employer-sponsored coverage.

Together, we can make sure that happens. Together, we can make sure everyone who is eligible is covered by Medicaid, and every American has access to high-quality, affordable health coverage.

Thank you.

Lily Griego, regional director, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services