Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 24, 2024

CONTACT: Lynn Sutfin, 517-241-2112, [email protected]

More than 2.6 million Michigan residents enrolled
in Medicaid following year-long redetermination process
Nearly 142,000 beneficiaries renew coverage in May;
1.8 million renewed their coverage during the past year

LANSING, Mich. – As the year-long post-pandemic Medicaid redetermination process draws to a close, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced it renewed Medicaid and Healthy Michigan Plan coverage for an additional 141,992 people whose eligibility was up for renewal in May. More than 1.8 million beneficiaries have renewed their insurance coverage during the process, bringing the total Medicaid enrollment to 2.6 million.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people continued to receive Medicaid without having to renew annually under the Families First Coronavirus Act. The federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 ended the pause on annual redeterminations. Michigan reinstated the renewal process beginning in May 2023. The renewal process will continue annually going forward.

“More than 2.6 million people currently have health care coverage through Medicaid or the Healthy Michigan Plan,” said Elizabeth Hertel, MDHHS director. “This was the largest renewal process our state has ever conducted, with 1.8 million beneficiaries renewing their coverage during the past year. MDHHS employed numerous successful strategies to help ensure those families continued to have health care coverage.”

Strategies making the renewal process easier and that reduced the number of residents at risk of losing coverage have been approved through June 2025 by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. These include: 

• Renewing Medicaid eligibility for people receiving benefits under the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program without conducting separate income determinations.
• Reinstating eligibility for people who were disenrolled for procedural reasons and are subsequently redetermined to be eligible for Medicaid during a 90-day reconsideration period.
• Providing beneficiaries an extra month to submit paperwork to avoid loss of health care coverage.
• Renewing Medicaid eligibility based on a simplified asset verification process.
• Continuing robust beneficiary outreach via phone, text and email.

These tactics resulted in:

• Thirty percent of beneficiaries disenrolled being reinstated during the 90-day reconsideration period.
• One in 4 individuals who lost Medicaid coverage have other comprehensive health care coverage today.

The latest data on Medicaid renewals can be found on MDHHS’ online dashboard. The dashboard, which is updated monthly, shows that 1,842,038 million people have been renewed to date. The department is awaiting completed enrollment forms from another 94,723 people who were up for renewal in May and have until the end of June to return paperwork. 

There were 12,402 people disenrolled in May because they were no longer eligible and 1,954 whose eligibility was not renewed for procedural reasons, such as not providing verification documents like a driver’s license, pay stubs and bank statements. MDHHS advises all Medicaid enrollees to check their renewal month and renew online at Michigan.gov/MIBridges.

Families should return renewal paperwork even if they believe they are no longer eligible for Medicaid. Some members of a household can obtain health care coverage even when others are not eligible. For example, a child may be eligible for MiChild, even if their parent is not eligible for other Medicaid programs. Or some Michiganders may have income that is over the income limit for one program and still be able to obtain health care benefits through another program. 

Those who no longer qualify will receive additional information about other affordable health coverage options available, including on HealthCare.gov. Affected Michiganders can shop for and enroll in comprehensive health insurance as they transition away from Medicaid. Many can purchase a plan for less than $10 per month. Medicaid beneficiaries can learn more, including what they need to do to prepare for renewals, on the Medicaid Benefit Changes website. 

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 30, 2024

CONTACT: Chelsea Wuth, 517-241-2112, [email protected]

Additional influenza A (H5) case detected in Michigan
Risk to general public remains low

LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is announcing an additional case of influenza A (H5) in a Michigan farmworker, who worked closely with influenza A (H5) positive cows. This worker was employed at a different farm than the case announced on May 22. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to highlight that the risk to the public remains low; this farm worker was quickly provided antivirals and is recovering from respiratory symptoms.

This virus has been associated with the ongoing multistate outbreak of influenza A (H5N1). As part of the ongoing response, state and local public health are closely monitoring for potential human cases, which can occur sporadically in individuals with close contact to infected animals. It is not unexpected that comprehensive testing is identifying sporadic human infections in farm workers.

“Michigan has led a swift public health response, and we have been tracking this situation closely since influenza A (H5N1) was detected in poultry and dairy herds in Michigan. Farmworkers who have been exposed to impacted animals have been asked to report even mild symptoms, and testing for the virus has been made available,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive. “With the first case in Michigan, eye symptoms occurred after a direct splash of infected milk to the eye. With this case, respiratory symptoms occurred after direct exposure to an infected cow. Neither individual was wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE). This tells us that direct exposure to infected livestock poses a risk to humans, and that PPE is an important tool in preventing spread among individuals who work on dairy and poultry farms. We have not seen signs of sustained human-to-human transmission, and the current health risk to the general public remains low.”

“In Michigan, we continue to respond to influenza A (H5N1) with a one-health approach, working closely with our federal, state, and local partners to address human and animal health,” said Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) Director Tim Boring. “Proper use of personal protective equipment is the best tool we have to protect farm workers. MDARD is currently offering assistance to dairy farms in need of additional protective equipment. MDARD has and will continue to take bold actions to assist farms impacted by this disease.”

MDHHS recommends seasonal flu vaccination for people working on poultry or dairy farms. It will not prevent infection with avian influenza viruses, but it can reduce the risk of coinfection with avian and flu viruses.

MDHHS will be posting additional case identifications at Michigan.gov/influenzaA.