J.K. Wall reporting for the IBJ:
More than 80,000 Hoosiers had their applications for Medicaid health benefits stuck in a backlog in May, prompting the federal government to launch a special review this month.
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, known as CMS, sent a letter to Indiana officials July 9 expressing concern about the delays. Indiana was one of 13 states to receive the letters.
Joe Moser, director of the Indiana Medicaid program, said his staff has already whittled down the backlog by roughly half. Indiana is scheduled to meet with CMS officials next week to begin the review process.
“We made a significant dent in pending applications in the last two months,” Moser said, estimating the backlog of 82,500 applications in May had dropped by more than 20,000 in June and by another 20,000 or more in July. “That may alleviate any concerns they may have had.”
If Indiana wants to prove that programs like HIP can work, it’ll be important to get these applications dealt with, regardless of what caused the backlog.
