State health department to host Medicaid information sessions

Dec. 09--The N.H. Department of Health and Human Services will hold a series of meetings over the next two months to introduce a new health insurance program for people enrolled in Medicaid. In addition to meetings elsewhere in the state, the department will hold a session in Keene on Jan. 31, from 2:30 to 4 p.m., in room 14 of the Keene Recreation Center. The center is at 312 Washington St.

The new program, Granite Advantage Health Care, will replace the N.H. Health Protection Program's Premium Assistance Program in 2019, according to a news release from the state health department.

At the meetings, department staff will provide an overview of Granite Advantage, the open enrollment period, the transition to the new program and the new work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries ages 19 to 64. The presentation will also cover Granite Workforce, a pilot job-training and employment-support program for Medicaid-covered adults.

The health department implemented the work requirement after being granted a waiver from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the department that oversees Medicaid. Under the new waiver, many adults who have joined Medicaid through the Affordable Care Act expansion will be required to report at least 100 hours of work, job training, education or volunteer activities per month, according to a May 7 letter from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The work requirements will go into effect Jan. 1, the letter says. New Hampshire is one of several states to announce work requirements for its Medicaid program.

Liora Engel-Smith can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1439, or lsmith@keenesentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @LEngelSmithKS.

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