Disabled people in Florida still struggling to get Medicaid restored after ‘unwinding’

Sunshine State among half-dozen yet to fully restore coverage to low-income people with disabilities

Months after a federal judge ordered Florida to restore Medicaid coverage to thousands of low-income people with disabilities, many are still waiting to get their benefits back. A federal judge ruled in June that the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) had illegally disenrolled people from Medicaid after the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency.

The judge ordered AHCA to restore coverage to everyone who was wrongfully disenrolled by Sept. 30. But as of mid-October, more than 100,000 people were still waiting for their coverage to be restored, according to the Florida Health Justice Project, a legal aid group that represents people with disabilities.

AHCA did meet the court’s deadline of September 30th, but that was only because they had stopped the clock on thousands of cases, meaning they didn’t count toward the total. Once the legal clock started ticking again only about 285,000 cases were restored out of 536,000 total.

Of those 100,000 people, many are among the most vulnerable in the state. They are people with disabilities who rely on Medicaid to pay for essential medical care, such as doctor’s visits, prescription drugs, and therapy. Without Medicaid, they could lose access to the care they need to stay healthy and live independently.

‘It’s been a nightmare’

For many people, the loss of Medicaid has been devastating. They have had to delay or cancel doctor’s appointments, ration their medications, and even go without food.

That’s what’s happening to Frank Misuraca, a 62-year-old man with cerebral palsy who lives in Port St. Lucie. Misuraca lost his Medicaid coverage in May, and he has been struggling to get it back ever since.

“It’s been a nightmare,” Misuraca said. “I’ve had to cancel doctor’s appointments, and I’ve had to ration my medications. I’m just trying to survive.”

Slow progress

AHCA has been criticized for its slow progress in restoring Medicaid coverage to everyone who is eligible. The agency has blamed the delays on a number of factors, including a backlog of applications and a shortage of staff.

But advocates for people with disabilities say the agency is not doing enough to help people get the coverage they need. They say AHCA needs to do more outreach to people who have been disenrolled and make it easier for them to re-enroll.

“AHCA is not doing enough to help people get the coverage they need,” said David Bruns, a staff attorney with the Florida Health Justice Project. “They need to do more outreach and make it easier for people to re-enroll.”

What can you do?

If you are a person with a disability who has lost Medicaid coverage, there are a few things you can do:

• Contact your local AHCA office and ask for help re-enrolling.
• Contact a legal aid organization for assistance.
• File a complaint with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

You can also contact your state legislators and ask them to support legislation that would make it easier for people with disabilities to get Medicaid coverage.