State to Hold Annual Forum on Medicaid 1115 Waiver

The Department of Health (DOH) will be holding a virtual public forum on the State's current Medicaid 1115 waiver on Wed., Sept. 28, 2022. The hearing fulfills a federal requirement to receive public input annually on 1115 waivers; it is not directly related to the proposed amendment to the 1115 waiver.

Individuals seeking to provide oral comments must pre-register here with the initials “SP” in front of their name (ex: SP Jane Doe) and email 1115waivers@health.ny.gov no later than Tues., Sept. 27, 2022 at 4 p.m. to confirm their registration. Oral comments must be limited to five minutes or less. American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be available, and the WebEx platform includes a closed captioning feature.

Written comments may be submitted in writing through Mon., Oct. 10, 2022 here. Submissions should include “1115 Public Forum Comment” in the subject line.

The State's current waiver, also known as the Medicaid Redesign Team (MRT) Waiver, is an agreement between the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and New York that allows the State to require most Medicaid beneficiaries to enroll in managed care plans in order to receive services and enables the expansion of Medicaid coverage to certain individuals who would otherwise be uninsured. For example, the MRT Waiver authorizes the State's Managed Long Term Care (MLTC) program. The MRT Waiver was renewed on April 1, 2022 and is effective through March 31, 2027.

The State has submitted a proposed amendment to the 1115 waiver, entitled "Making Targeted, Evidence-Based Investments to Address the Health Disparities Exacerbated by the COVID-19 Pandemic." LeadingAge NY has submitted several sets of comments on the amendment, criticizing its lack of attention to older adults and long term care. An Intelligence article with the most recent comments is available here.

Contact: Karen Lipson, klipson@leadingageny.org