Medicaid: Citizenship Documentation
The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) included a new requirement that U.S citizens applying for Medicaid provide documentation to prove their citizenship status. This new mandate, which went into effect on July 1, 2006, is causing U.S. citizens nationwide to lose out on health care services for which they are eligible. The requirement is also incredibly burdensome for states to implement and administer.
Recent studies demonstrating the harm
Summary of GAO and Staff Findings: Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirements Deny Coverage to Citizens and Cost Taxpayers Millions (House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform)
States Reported That Citizenship Documentation Requirement Resulted in Enrollment Declines for Eligible Citizens and Posed Administrative Burdens (Government Accountability Office)
Medicaid Documentation Requirement Disproportionately Harms Non-Hispanics, New State Data Show: Rule Mostly Hurts U.S. Citizen Children, Not Undocumented Immigrants (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
New Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirement Is Taking a Toll (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
An Initial Assessment of the Effects of Medicaid Documentation Requirements on Health Centers and Their Patients (The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services Department of Health Policy)
Impact of the federal 2005 Deficit Reduction Act on Colorado Medicaid enrollment: Findings from the Eligibility Technician Survey (Colorado Health Institute)
Impact of the federal 2005 Deficit Reduction Act on Colorado Medicaid enrollment: Findings from the Outreach and Enrollment Worker Survey (Colorado Health Institute)
Implementation of the U.S. Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 in Oregon and its impacts on Oregon Health Plan clients (Oregon Department of Human Services)
Unintended Consequences: The Impact of New Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirements on Virginia’s Children (Virginia Health Care Foundation and Virginia Department Medical Assistance Services)
Unintended Consequences: The Effects of Medicaid Documentation Requirements in Wisconsin (Wisconsin Council on Children and Families)
Background information on citizenship documentation
The Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirement One Year Later (September 2007)
CMS Letter to State Medicaid Directors Exempting New Populations from Citizenship Documentation Requirement (February, 22, 2007)
Best Practices: How States Can Reduce the Burden of the Citizenship Documentation Requirement (Families USA, May 2007)
Analysis of the Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Regulations (Families USA, July 2006)
The Burden of Proof: New Regulations Worsen Citizenship Documentation Requirement in Medicaid (Families USA, July 2006)
Citizenship Update: Administration Creates Additional Barriers for Medicaid Enrollment (Families USA, June 2006)
Millions Must Now Prove Citizenship to Keep Medicaid Coverage (Families USA, February 2006)
Press Release: Federal Court Likely to Enjoin Rule Requiring 500,000 Foster Children in Medicaid to Document Citizenship (September 19, 2006) Update on the Medicaid Citizenship Lawsuit
Comments from 20 National Organizations on CMS’s Interim Final Rule on the New Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirement (August 11, 2006)
Comments from 80 State and Local Organizations on CMS's Interim Final Rule on the New Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Requirement (August 11, 2006)
Press Statement: Court Expedites Litigation Schedule on Medicaid Citizenship Documentation Law (July 7, 2006)
CMS Fact Sheet: HHS Issues Final Regulations with Comment on Citizenship Guidelines for Medicaid Eligibility (July 6, 2006)
Interim Final Regulations on the Citizenship Documentation Requirement (July 6, 2006)
Text of Medicaid Citizen Documentation Court Case (June 28, 2006)
CMS Fact Sheet: HHS Issues Citizenship Guidelines for Medicaid Eligibility (June 9, 2006)
CMS Guidance on Citizenship Documentation (June 9, 2006)
Obtaining Documentation of Citizenship Status and Identity for Medicaid Enrollment Under the 2005 Deficit Reduction Act (DRA)
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