Potential loss of Medi-Cal for thousands in Ventura County pushes massive outreach

Up to 50,000 low-income Ventura County residents could lose Medi-Cal benefits that pay for prescriptions, doctors and hospital care over the next 14 months, but many can take steps to keep their coverage.

Protections put in place at the beginning of the pandemic three years ago meant people who qualified for insurance couldn’t be dropped from the program and no longer needed their coverage to be renewed annually. With the federal pandemic emergency ending, Congress eliminated that shield as of March 31.

In a process that begins this month and continues through May 2024, counties are again checking eligibility and renewing coverage in a change triggering a massive outreach effort to reduce the flood of people who could be dropped from the program.

About 40,000 to 50,000 people could lose coverage, said Jennie Pittman, deputy director of the Ventura County Human Services Agency. Some are no longer eligible because of life changes like new jobs that have brought insurance or boosted incomes over Medi-Cal limits.

Many others will lose coverage at least temporarily if they have fallen out of contact with the Medi-Cal program and don’t receive or respond to their letters and messages. The problem is many of the people are unaware of the program change.

“It doesn’t seem like people really understand what is going on,” said Deirdre Smith, director of justice services for Interface Children and Family Services. The nonprofit is one of several groups partnering with the county to get the word out.

The outreach involves going to family resource fairs and other community events. Mailers, flyers, social media and radio ads are also being used in a drive led by the California Department of Health Care Services.

This month, county workers will send out information to people who originally enrolled in June of a previous year. Some will receive a notice their benefits were automatically renewed. Others will get a yellow envelope holding renewal paperwork to complete.

People who don't respond, or are no longer eligible, will lose coverage at the end of June.

In May, similar letters will be sent to people who need to be renewed in July. The process will continue for more than a year.

People who don’t receive letters should update their contact information at KeepMediCalCoverage.org. People can also report changes to their address or income to the county by calling 888-472-4463.

Medi-Cal navigators who can help people with the renewal process can be contacted at 833-607-2650 and 805-215-0730.

People who don't take action and are dropped from coverage but are still eligible can reenroll and regain coverage. Those who are no longer eligible may be transferred to Covered California, the Affordable Care Act program that started offering insurance in 2014 and is designed to provide subsidies for low- and middle-income people.

Pittman said the county is working with school districts, health systems and others to try to eliminate the loss of any gap in coverage. She is one of many who worries people won't realize their coverage has lapsed until they need it.

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“They might go to the doctor and they might find out that they don’t have (coverage) anymore,” said Yaneth Vasquez of the Health Navigators program run by Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project, also involved in the outreach.

Smith said the potential of loss of insurance will devastate families, also toppling over a series of dominoes. People who no longer have insurance could seek care in emergency rooms in numbers that could stretch the safety net system.

"There’s going to be a lot of fallout for the hospital systems in Ventura County," she said, noting access to mental health care would be affected too. "Everything is touched by this.”

Tom Kisken covers health care and other news for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tom.kisken@vcstar.com or 805-437-0255.

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This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Efforts ramp up to keep people from losing Medi-Cal benefits