Medicaid
and Foster Care: Transition Youth
Patient
Protection & Affordable Care Act (PPACA) already allows youth, up to 26, to
stay on their parents insurance. That is all good and well but what happens to
youth that transition out of the foster care system. How does PPACA affect
them? In general, these youth are covered by their state under the Early and
Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program through the age of
21 but after 21 they lose this coverage.
On January 1st, 2014, PPACA changed
the rules for youth transitioning out of foster care. Now, former foster care
youth who are under age 26 and have aged out of the system automatically gained
coverage. States are required to extend Medicaid coverage to youth who are in
foster care and enrolled in Medicaid as of their 18th birthday, or those who
were enrolled in Medicaid when they aged out of the system. This also applies
to states that did not opt for Medicaid expansion. It is a good step in
covering people who need it. About 55,000 youth are expected to use the new
rules on eligibility in 2014, while growing to 74,000 by 2017.
http://www.openminds.com/email/042214-foster-age-out.htm
Zack Karenchak
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