- Seek help from an Indiana Certified Navigator

The toolkit will be housed on the websites for Covering Kids & Families of Indiana, Hoosier Action and the Indiana Primary Care Association.

Senate Bill 1 - Behavioral Health Matters. Provides that the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) will apply for a Medicaid state plan amendment, a waiver, or an amendment to an existing waiver to require reimbursement for eligible certified community behavioral health clinic services or to participate in the expansion of a community mental health services demonstration program. The legislation also requires the Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) to establish and maintain a help line to provide confidential emotional support and referrals to certain resources to individuals who call the help line and that is accessible by calling a toll free telephone number.

This bill has now passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which looked into the funding allocations needed to accomplish the bill's goals. It will now move on the the full Senate for consideration.

Senate Bill 4 - Public Health Commission - Delineates core public health services and their delivery as recommended by the Governor's Public Health Commission, while also increasing state level support for these local efforts.

This bill has now passed out of the Senate Health and Provider Services Committee and will next be vetted for fiscal impact in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Senate Bill 376 Lawfully Residing Immigrants and Eligibility. Provides Medicaid eligibility for pregnant women and children under 21 who are lawfully residing immigrants and meet all other Medicaid eligibility requirements. This provision also provides eligibility for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for lawfully residing individuals who are less than 19 years of age. Under current law, eligibility is limited to those who have lawfully resided in the United States for at least 5 years, with the above groups eligible for emergency only (Package E) Medicaid.

This bill will have a hearing in the Senate Family and Children Services Committee on Monday, February 6, where testimony will be heard on the bill before sending it to the full Senate. Those interested in supporting this legislation may contact Mark Fairchild, CKF Director of Policy & Communication, at mfairchild@ckfindiana.org.

House Bill 1091 - Continuous eligibility under Medicaid and CHIP. Changes the requirements for submitting eligibility information for Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees less than 19 to no more than once annually.

This bill has cleared 3^rd reading in the House of Representatives, meaning it will now move on for further consideration in the Senate.

House Bill 1205 - Medicaid reimbursement for school services. Requires the Family and Social Services Administration to apply for a Medicaid state plan amendment before September 1, 2023, to allow school corporations to obtain Medicaid reimbursement for specified services, which is an attempt to finalize legislative efforts to do so. The legislation also adds a school psychologist as a qualified provider for purposes of the Medicaid program and provides that a school psychologist does not need supervision or authorization from another qualified provider in order to obtain Medicaid reimbursement for certain services provided to a Medicaid recipient.

This bill is currently awaiting a hearing in the House Public Health Committee.

Marketplace enrollment for 2023 plans finished at over 16.3 million by the end of open enrollment, surpassing 2022's final open enrollment total of 14.5 million. According to data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Indiana's final enrollment was 185,354 for 2023, compared to 156,926 for open enrollment 2022 and 136,593 for open enrollment 2021.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a Marketplace Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for consumers who lose Medicaid due to the end of continuous coverage (Medicaid unwinding). This “Unwinding SEP” will permit Marketplace eligible consumers to submit a new application or update an existing application between March 31, 2023 and July 31, 2024. Consumers will need to attest that they lost Medicaid or CHIP coverage at any point during the SEP. 

The Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) updated their website URL about the Medicaid return to normal. The new website's address is: https://www.in.gov/medicaid/members/member-resources/How-a-return-to-normal-will-impact-some-Indiana-Medicaid-members/.

Effective January 1, 2023, former foster care youth who were enrolled in Medicaid and aged out of foster care, in any state, can qualify for Medicaid coverage until their 26^th birthday. This coverage does not have an income limit, nor does it require an annual redetermination. Previously, former foster care youth from other states could qualify for coverage until their 21^st birthday if they meet income and reporting guidelines. The state is also updating the foster care question on the Presumptive Eligibility (PE) application to reflect this change.

We invite you to join us for the 15^th annual Indiana School Health Network Conference as a sponsor.  As a conference sponsor, your organization can raise awareness of your services while connecting to and networking with conference attendees.  

Join the Indiana Afterschool Network and Covering Kids & Families of Indiana to learn about an innovative opportunity for Out-of-School Time (OST) professionals to access low-cost health insurance coverage.

March 2^nd @ 2:00pm