Auburn event raises awareness about renewing health coverage as COVID emergency ends [The Citizen, Auburn, N.Y.]

May 10—AUBURN — With a dinosaur and an RV, Fidelis Care sought to inform the public about how the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency will affect the renewal process for those on certain types of health insurance.

When the federal emergency ends on Thursday, people who are on Medicaid, Child Health Plus, Essential Plan and Managed Long-Term Care will need to renew their health insurance coverage. This will affect 9 million people in New York and 2 million Fidelis Care members.

Fidelis Care brought its RV and set up a table outside East Hill Medical Center in Auburn to raise awareness about the change. Megan Woodward, vice president of member retention at Fidelis Care, explained that individuals on these health insurance plans will receive notices to renew their coverage. If they don't respond with a 30-day period, they risk losing their insurance.

Woodward encouraged people covered by these plans to make sure their health insurance company has their updated contact information. When they receive their notice either in the mail or by email, she urged them to act immediately.

"There's really a tight clock on that piece of mail," Woodward said.

The first wave of notices have already been sent to individuals who will need to renew their health insurance. The first day they can act is Tuesday, May 16, according to Woodward, and the deadline to respond is June 15.

To keep their insurance, Woodward said they have to answer some basic questions, such as their household information and any change in income.

"These are folks, many of whom joined during the pandemic, and have never been through this before," she added. "We expect this is going to be a pretty significant impact for many New Yorkers."

East Hill Medical Center is assisting its patients by doing pre-visit planning, according to Melanie Catalfano-Marventano, the center's practice administrator. When a patient has an appointment scheduled, she said the front-end staff look up to see if they have a plan managed by Fidelis and check their renewal date. They also update their contact information — an important step to ensure they receive their renewal notice.

Catalfano-Marventano also encourages patients to stay engaged with their provider's office. She noted that some patients "fall off," meaning they will come for an initial visit but then don't show up for follow-up appointments.

Anyone seeking more information about health insurance renewals should go to fideliscare.org/renew or call (866) 435-921 from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Politics reporter Robert Harding can be reached at (315) 282-2220 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @robertharding.

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