As child advocates, we are counting on you to raise your voice by submitting public comments on the Bevin Administration’s 1115 Medicaid Waiver proposal.
The Bevin Administration has proposed an 1115 Waiver to modify Kentucky’s Medicaid program. This proposal is called Kentucky HEALTH and must be approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) before it can be implemented. As child advocates, we are concerned with the many requirements in the Bevin Administration’s 1115 Medicaid Waiver proposal because they will create barriers to coverage for many parents covered through Medicaid expansion. If parents lose coverage, their children will be negatively impacted as well.
The Bevin Administration has submitted the waiver proposal to CMS for review. CMS is currently accepting public comments about the waiver proposal.
CMS needs to hear from you!
If you are concerned about the impact that Kentucky HEALTH could have on your family’s coverage, advocate for families who receive Medicaid benefits, or want Kentucky to continue making progress in health coverage and outcomes, submit your comments to CMS by following the instructions below.
Comments must be received by October 8.
Read Kentucky Youth Advocates position statement regarding the Bevin Administration’s 1115 Medicaid Waiver proposal here.
Steps to make a public comment to CMS:
STEP 1. Go to the public comment page, found here. You can choose to enter your comments in the text box or attach a file with your comments.
STEP 2. Begin your comments with a couple of sentences describing who you are and why you are concerned about the proposed Medicaid waiver. Example: “I am a father of two kids, and I need Medicaid to go to the doctor,” or, “I am a counselor at a school, and I know many of the kids who attend the school have parents on Medicaid.” If you are submitting comments as an organization, include relevant information about your organization.
STEP 3. Copy or modify some or all of the following talking points:
A number of provisions in the 1115 Medicaid Waiver proposal create barriers to parents maintaining health insurance. Parents’ health is vitally important to children’s health, and if parents are going to improve health outcomes for themselves and their children, the Medicaid program must be simple for families to understand, participate in, and utilize. Also, if parents lose health insurance due to added requirements and cost-sharing mechanisms, children across Kentucky are likely to also lose coverage even if those children’s eligibility and benefits do not change.
Because I want Medicaid to work for all families in Kentucky who need it, I would like to see the following provisions be added or amended in the final 1115 Medicaid Waiver:
-Include dental and vision benefits in the standard benefits package instead of being classified as an earned benefit.
-Exempt individuals under 100% of the federal poverty level from premiums and copayments.
–Cap the monthly premium at $15 per month for the length of the 1115 Medicaid Waiver (5 years) to ensure working adults without employer-sponsored insurance who cannot secure jobs with higher pay can maintain affordable health insurance through Medicaid.
-Remove barriers to Medicaid re-enrollment, such as lock-out provisions and the requirement to back pay premiums, if dis-enrolled for nonpayment.
-Exempt all caregivers in non-traditional situations, like kinship care, from all cost-sharing and lock-out periods.
-Exempt individuals diagnosed with a substance use disorder (SUD) from all cost-sharing and work (or community engagement) requirements until they are on a successful path to recovery.
-Increase the dollar amount of My Rewards Account incentives for parents and pregnant women for activities such as prenatal visits or taking children for preventative dental visits. While the Bevin Administration added more activities for parents to the final waiver proposal submitted CMS, increasing the incentive dollar amount to be earned per activity would allow individuals to earn more dollars to spend on things like over-the-counter medications.
-Define pregnancy to include a time period of six months after birth to ensure eligibility for appropriate follow-up care.
-Extend the timeline of the 1115 Medicaid Waiver implementation.
-Ensure Medicaid members have access to help if they have questions about their plan in person, by phone, and online. This includes having help available after regular business hours so parents who work during the day can get help in the evening in understanding their plan and the requirements they must meet to continue receiving Medicaid.
The waiver proposal includes several provisions that protect vulnerable populations, and I would like for the final waiver to include those provisions. This includes exempting children and pregnant women from cost-sharing requirements; exempting primary caregivers of dependents from work and community engagement requirements; exempting former foster youth from the waiver; and maintaining the current Medicaid benefit package for children, pregnant women, and parents covered through SSA 1931.
STEP 4: You can also add a description of how premiums, a lock-out period, or reduced benefits could impact you, someone you work with, or your community.
STEP 5: If you are submitting your comments as a document, upload your file to the comment page. Whether you typed in the text box or uploaded a file, click “Finish” to submit your comments.
Kentucky Youth Advocated is a nonprofit organization, “The Independent Voice for Kentucky’s Children,” headquartered in Louisville. Contact abennett@kyyouth.org with any questions.
