Medicaid coverage restored to about a half-million people after computer errors in many states

By DAVID A. LIEB
Associated Press

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — About a half-million people are regaining Medicaid coverage after the federal government says they were dropped inappropriately by states. Officials at the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services say the issue affected people in 29 states and the District of Columbia. All states are undertaking a massive review of Medicaid eligibility after they were prohibited from ending coverage for people during the coronavirus pandemic. Federal rules require states to assess whether each individual in a household is eligible, because children have higher eligibility thresholds than adults. But federal officials say computer systems in some states evaluated entire households, not individuals.