State informing nearly 1 million New Mexicans that Medicaid enrollment no long automatic

Mar. 30—The nearly 1 million New Mexicans who receive health insurance through the state's Medicaid program should be on the lookout for a turquoise envelope in the mail.

The federal government is ending automatic Medicaid renewals put in place during the coronavirus pandemic, and the New Mexico Human Services Department will be sending out renewal applications in turquoise envelopes when people on Medicaid are due to renew their coverage.

"This is really going to have a statewide impact with an overall average decline of about 9.6% in total Medicaid enrollment here in New Mexico," acting Secretary Kari Armijo said during a virtual briefing Thursday.

The department started mailing renewal applications this month to customers whose renewals are due in April.

"Not all 978,207 renewals are going to be done at once," Armijo said. "Between April and July, we will be initiating renewals for about 110,000 New Mexicans who, according to our recent income data, no longer meet the Medicaid eligibility criteria."

For the remainder of the year, Armijo said the department will be reaching out to individuals who continue to meet the income criteria for Medicaid.

"We'll be aligning renewals with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program as much as possible," Armijo said, referring to the benefits program commonly known as food stamps.

Toward the end of the 12 months, or in early 2024, Armijo said the department would be concentrating on renewing what she called the state's most vulnerable populations.

"Those would be people with disabilities and those who need long-term services and supports," she said, adding all renewals must be completed by April 2024.

Renewing Medicaid benefits is easy, Armijo said.

The fastest and easiest way is at www.yes.state.nm.us. Other options include by mail — CASA, P.O. Box 830, Bernalillo, NM 87004 — or in person at a local Human Services Department field office. The number to call with questions is 1-800-283-4465.

"The most important thing here is to watch for your turquoise envelope and when you receive it to fill ... the renewal form out or submit it online by the deadline in order to keep getting Medicaid," said Armijo, who emphasized the importance of customers updating their contact information.

As part of its get-out-the-word campaign, the department launched a statewide public awareness and multimedia campaign dubbed Renew NM.

Karmela Martinez, director of the Human Services Department's Income Support Division, which determines eligibility for new applications and renewals, said it's "really critical" to remind people on Medicaid to submit their renewal applications in as soon as possible.

"We do process [applications] in the order received, and we want to ensure that people have a continuity of care with their medical insurance," she said.

Armijo said the renewal process now in place mirrors what was happening before the coronavirus pandemic.

"There was a pause due to the pandemic while people were sort of having fluctuating income, and we wanted to make sure that people had coverage during COVID and all of that," she said. "This is really just a resumption of how it was before COVID."

Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.

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