This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” features two guests from Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield on Medicaid reenrollment in Wisconsin.
Paul Nobile is the organization’s commercial plan president, and Ted Osthelder is its Medicaid plan president. With the federal pandemic public health emergency ending shortly, they share insights on how the Medicaid renewal process will be playing out in Wisconsin.
“At the start of COVID-19, the public health emergency put in place the suspension of the determinations for eligibility,” Osthelder (pictured here) explained. “That process is now coming to an end … We’re redetermining folks’ eligibility for the safety net program.”
He noted states including Wisconsin now need to check if Medicaid members remain eligible for coverage, based on if they had a change in income, household size, disability status or other factors.
“No real estimates right now on how many in Wisconsin could lose access to coverage, but the overall growth in the Medicaid program since the public health emergency began is about 300,000,” he noted.
Nobile highlights the state’s effort to reach out to those who might be impacted and provide resources.
“The last thing we want to have happen is people fall through the gaps for any reason … The majority of folks will remain on Medicaid. So that’s positive news for a lot of folks. But there will be populations and cohorts of people that will no longer be eligible,” he said.
Listen to the podcast below, sponsored by UW-Madison:
