25,000 working parents in Illinois to lose their state-provided health coverage on July 1, 2012

June 12, 2012

State sends letters to affected working families with 3 weeks' notice they will be dropped.

Parents face Medicaid cutoffs

CHICAGO -- More than 25,000 working parents in Illinois stand to lose their state-provided health coverage on July 1 -- and most of them don't know it yet.

State officials will eliminate their coverage in just three weeks as part of the $2.7 billion package of cuts and taxes the Legislature passed in May in an effort to save Illinois' Medicaid program from possible collapse. But with the clock ticking, the state has just sent out notices to the Medicaid families who will be affected once Gov. Pat Quinn signs the bill, as he has promised to do.

Among the few who do know is Jennifer Bowman, a 24-year-old single mother from Sterling. She makes less than $2,000 a month working as a secretary and says she can't afford to see a doctor if she loses her state Family Care coverage. She found out only because she is employed by the Whiteside County Health Department.

"I support my son all by myself. I have health issues," Bowman said. "Once I lose my medical card at the beginning of July, going to the doctor isn't an option for me anymore."

The state agency responsible for Medicaid sent roughly 26,000 notices to parents losing coverage on Friday, an agency spokesman told the Associated Press. Other letters to seniors losing help with prescription drug costs are being mailed in batches this week, Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services spokesman Mike Claffey told the AP on Monday.

"We are acting to save the Medicaid program from the brink of collapse," said Quinn spokeswoman Brooke Anderson. "We have been facing an unprecedented crisis in Illinois and must move quickly to implement the changes that will rescue the program and preserve services for those who need it most."

Illinois has little experience informing Medicaid patients they're losing coverage. The program has had few eligibility limits imposed, and mostly the program has grown to cover more residents over the years. Last year, a new income limit was placed on state coverage for children covered by a program called All Kids. But, in that case, the Legislature gave a year before the 4,000 children already enrolled lost their coverage. Their families got many months' advance notice.

Now, advocates are bracing for phone calls from Medicaid recipients who may have only a week or two to make backup plans. Clinics are rescheduling appointments for patients in the middle of treatment.

With Quinn's signature, some Medicaid programs will die at the beginning of the state's fiscal year, which is July 1. While the poorest Illinois residents will continue to receive benefits, parents making more than 133 percent of the federal poverty guidelines -- about $20,000 a year for a two-person household -- will see their coverage under Family Care suddenly halt.

"We're worried that when people receive the notices we'll get a flood of phone calls from people in a panic," said Kathy Chan, director of policy for the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition.

"This is going to be a shock to a lot of recipients. ... We're also concerned with what the notices will say. Will they get them in time? Will they understand what the notices are telling them?"

Some patients will be able to see doctors at federally funded community health clinics, which charge fees based on ability to pay. But some pockets of Illinois, including McLean and Adams, don't have these health centers. Capacity is limited at other health centers, advocates say. Another part of the legislation requires many hospitals to provide free surgeries and other care to needy patients, but not everyone losing coverage would qualify.

Seniors enrolled in Illinois Cares Rx also will get notices about the July 1 termination of that program, which provides financial help with prescription drug costs to about 180,000 low-income older adults and people with disabilities.

"It's ridiculous," David Vinkler of AARP said of the late notice, adding that some senior centers are still signing people up for Illinois Cares Rx because, officially, the program still exists. AARP is urging the governor to save the program using a veto.

The Chicago-based Health and Disability Advocates has scheduled a web-based seminar this week to explain how seniors can qualify for a similar federal program that assists with prescription drug costs.

Dental care is another problem. Medicaid covers 2.7 million Illinois residents and most won't lose coverage entirely. But all adults on Medicaid will lose some benefits like regular dental care.

"We are contacting all adults with Medicaid coverage to move up dental appointments since we know dental coverage is being totally eliminated for adults," said Melinda Whiteman, executive director at Eagle View Community Health System in the western Illinois village of Oquawka.

Lucy Ramirez of Chicago Family Health Center said the clinic also is rescheduling dental appointments for June and will send post cards to Family Care patients urging them to come in before July 1.

It's unclear how many losing coverage already have other insurance or the ability to enroll in a health plan at work. Besides state insurance, Bowman also has a high-deductible health plan, meaning she pays the first $10,000 out of her pocket. That will protect her from catastrophic medical bills, but she has used Family Care for regular doctor visits.

She said she's annoyed Family Care coverage will continue for the very poor.

They take it away from the person who goes to work every day 40 hours a week, but give it to the person who sits at home all day. ... Because I go to work, in their eyes, I don't deserve to be helped."

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AP Medical Writer Carla K. Johnson can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/CarlaKJohnson

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.

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