Are you covered? What Maryland residents need to know about their Medicaid coverage.

Close to 35,000 Maryland residents lost access to Medicaid as the state returned to checking eligibility for the public health insurance program, after a COVID-era requirement to keep recipients continuously enrolled expired May 31. Most people — 71% — lost the safety net because of procedural problems, such as failing to file forms or responding to requests for information too late. They are among millions of others who are losing Medicaid coverage, meant for low-income families and individuals, nationwide.

Loss of such health coverage can lead to delays in accessing medical care and prevent individuals from filling prescriptions for chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. That means primary care offices and community health centers may have lower numbers of patient visits, while emergency department visits could rise, with more severe health issues requiring hospital admissions.

Maryland is taking care to spread this process of reviewing eligibility over 12 months. It is critical that Marylanders receiving Medicaid keep their information up to date. In Baltimore City, for example, a third of all residents and two-thirds of young people ages 19 and under, are insured through this program. If their information is incorrect, these residents might miss important notices, putting them at risk of losing their health insurance.

To update information, recipients should log in to the Maryland Health Connection website (www.marylandhealthconnection.gov) and make sure their contact information is up to date. They should stay on the lookout for emails and letters from Maryland Health Connection letting them know a) if they are still eligible for Medicaid, and b) when it’s time for them to renew. Recipients have 45 days to renew or enroll in a different health plan if they are no longer eligible. If they miss this notice and do not reenroll, they will lose their coverage. They can still apply to renew, but will face a gap in coverage. Anyone who needs assistance can call the Health Care Access Maryland Connector Program at 410-500-4710 or the Maryland Health Connection at 855-642-8572. After they’re all set, they should talk with their family members and neighbors about the process, increasing awareness for anyone they think might need this crucial information.

Community-based organizations and clinic providers should share these Medicaid changes with clients and patients, via flyers and social media posts, among other outlets. When possible, they should make reminder phone calls to members and patients with complex needs asking them to update their information with Maryland Health Connection and to check their email and mail for notices.

The Maryland Department of Health has an easy-to-use communication toolkit available online (health.maryland.gov) to get the word out about these changes. These resources include YouTube announcements, reminder messages from Gov. Wes Moore, printable flyers to post in offices, social media and email templates, and newsletter notices. Many of these tools are available in several languages.

The Baltimore City Health Department is raising awareness about the state’s Medicaid Check-In campaign through our clinical staff and social media. We are emphasizing the fact that Medicaid renewal is not automatic this year and it is important that all Medicaid enrollees make sure that their contact information is up to date with the Maryland Health Connection. In-person application assistance is available to Baltimore City residents through HealthCare Access Maryland (HCAM), which houses the Medicaid Unit for Baltimore City and the Connector Program for Central Region. Currently, HCAM is working with BCHD on a schedule to have in-person consumer assistance workers available at health department sites to assist city residents through the Medicaid Check-In process.

BCHD and our partners are doing everything we can to ensure Baltimoreans don’t lose their health insurance. Now we ask Medicaid enrollees to take these important steps now to update their information and stay covered.

Tamara Green ([email protected]) is chief medical officer for the Baltimore City Health Department.