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Updates for local agencies, community-based organizations, and providers who provide assistance to members of Wisconsin's health and nutrition public assistance programs.
Health Care Benefits May Now Be Available to Citizens of the Compacts of Free Association Countries
Due to a federal rule change, citizens of the Compacts of Free Association (COFA) countries living legally in Wisconsin may now be able to get BadgerCare Plus or Medicaid health care benefits. The COFA countries are the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
COFA citizens must apply and meet all program rules for BadgerCare Plus or Medicaid in order to get health care benefits.
- COFA citizens who applied for health care benefits in December 2020 or later will have their eligibility redetermined as of August 2021. They will get a letter letting them know if they will get benefits.
- COFA citizens who have not applied for health care benefits since December 2020 will need to apply for benefits if they want them. They can apply online at www.access.wisconsin.gov. More information about applying for benefits can be found at www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/forwardhealth/apply.htm.
If COFA citizens are eligible for benefits, BadgerCare Plus or Medicaid may be able to pay for any out-of-pocket health care services they received dating back to December 27, 2020. To request help paying for such medical services, COFA citizens who are found eligible for BadgerCare Plus or Medicaid should contact their agency and tell them about their COFA citizen status.
Note: COFA citizens remain ineligible for FoodShare benefits. If they have been getting FoodShare benefits, these benefits may end or be reduced. COFA citizens will get a letter explaining any change in their benefits.
Additional background
This eligibility change for COFA citizens is a result of a change in federal law made in late 2020: see Section 208 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. Prior to passage of this legislation, Medicaid coverage for COFA citizens was limited to adults who needed emergency services, as well as COFA citizens who were pregnant, under 19, or under 21 and residing in an institution for mental disease.
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