CT Loses Bid To Tighten Medicaid Eligibility

The program is getting a bit spendy

The federal government has rejected the state's controversial request to tighten Medicaid eligibility, a change that had been expected to leave more than 13,000 poor adults without health care coverage.

"The [proposal] would eliminate coverage for as many as 13,381 very low-income individuals for an approximate one year period, which is not consistent with the general statutory objective to extend coverage to low-income populations," Marilyn Tavenner, acting administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, wrote in a letter to social services Commissioner Roderick L. Bremby.

Advocates for Medicaid recipients, who had been expecting the rejection, applauded the decision Friday. But many are now focused on trying to stop another proposal by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy that could cut even more people from the program.