Biden administration pleads with states after millions of kids lose Medicaid coverage

Key Facts

| Alex Wong/Getty Images HHS wants states with the highest rates of children dropped from Medicaid to use certain federal rules that make it easier to get families back on coverage.
In letters sent Monday to the governors of Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, South Dakota and Texas, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra urged the states to take up more of options CMS has offered to ensure coverage.
“Because all children deserve to have access to comprehensive health coverage, I urge you to ensure that no child in your state who still meets eligibility criteria for Medicaid or CHIP loses their health coverage due to ‘red tape’ or other avoidable reasons as all states ‘unwind’ from the Medicaid continuous enrollment provision that was in place during much of the COVID-19 public health emergency,” Becerra wrote.
According to HHS, the nine states are responsible for 60 percent of children’s coverage losses between March and September.