Rewinding the unwind: New reports recap successful renewals in Medical Assistance, MinnesotaCare

Rewinding the unwind: New reports recap successful renewals in Medical Assistance, MinnesotaCare

Minnesotans stayed connected to health care as the state and its partners improved renewal outcomes in public health care programs over the past year, reversing several racial disparities, removing red tape and helping kids.

Two new reports highlight successes and lessons learned from the massive undertaking to restart annual eligibility verifications in MinnesotaCare and Medical Assistance, Minnesota’s Medicaid program. During the yearlong effort called “the unwind,” more than 1.5 million people had their eligibility rechecked through a renewal process.

“Together with our partners, we made meaningful change during the unwind in the midst of an unprecedented volume of work,” said Human Services Commissioner Jodi Harpstead. “We celebrate a job well done, while knowing our work continues. We need to continue to invest in essential community engagement and systems improvements to maintain these achievements in the future."

Prepandemic studies have demonstrated that people with unstable Medicaid coverage had increased emergency department use, office visits and hospitalizations and decreased use of prescription medications, compared to individuals with consistent Medicaid coverage.

Reversing several racial disparities

When the unwind began, data showed that enrollees who are Black, Native American and Pacific Islander lost coverage at higher-than-average rates. Through focused effort, the state and its partners eliminated those disenrollment disparities by the end of the unwind. Hispanic/Latine enrollees consistently lost coverage at rates higher than the overall population throughout the unwinding period, but those gaps narrowed by the end.

Strategies to make renewals more equitable included:

• Establishing microgrants to support outreach efforts by community-based organizations,
• Focusing on disadvantaged enrollees using social vulnerability index data,
• Partnering with Twin Cities Public Television on a public campaign that centered Black, Native American, Somali, Hmong, Hispanic/Latine, Vietnamese, Russian and deaf communities,
• Participating in more than 60 community engagement and outreach events, and
• Hosting equity forums to gather community feedback.

Keeping the youngest Minnesotans insured

Overall, 88% of Minnesota kids who had to renew kept their insurance.

Cutting red tape

Increasing the automatic renewal rate removed red tape in the renewal process and played a major role in the state’s unwinding success. Automatic renewal rates increased nearly fivefold in METS. The rates went as low as 15% in 2023 and ended at 70% in June 2024. They are now above 80%.

Read the two new reports summarizing our successes and lessons learned:

• Minnesota Continuous Coverage Unwinding Project Summary
• Minnesota Health Care Programs Renewal Equity Report

Thank you

These accomplishments occurred because of a team approach. Minnesota’s unwinding success arose from strong partnerships with the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Governor Tim Walz’s office, Tribal Nations, the Minnesota Legislature, counties, navigators, health plans, providers, community groups and other state agencies. Unparalleled data-sharing and reports helped these partners amplify messaging and reach enrollees for outreach and engagement.

Another unwind lesson is that people would like to renew their coverage online. The state also needs to continue to invest in building community partnerships, equity-focused data analysis, language and technology access, and focused communication, outreach and intervention.

Read the two new reports summarizing our successes and lessons learned:

• Minnesota Continuous Coverage Unwinding Project Summary
• Minnesota Health Care Programs Renewal Equity Report