Federal Government Approves Connecticut Plan to Start Medicaid 60 Days Before Release
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont announced on November 6 that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved the state's proposal to begin Medicaid coverage 60 days before eligible individuals are released from correctional facilities.
Federal rules long barred Medicaid from covering people while they were incarcerated, a gap the Connecticut Department of Social Services and Department of Correction viewed as a barrier to helping people succeed after release. The initiative is intended to help justice-involved individuals manage chronic health concerns, including substance use disorders, by strengthening connections among carceral settings, state agencies, health and social service entities and community groups.
"Since taking office, my administration has worked to expand access to high-quality health care for people across Connecticut," Governor Lamont said. "This initiative will help ensure folks continue receiving medical care, mental health services, and substance use treatment as they return to the community. Connecting people to care before their release can save lives, support successful reentry, and help build safer, more stable communities."
CMS also stated that Connecticut will continue to receive federal reimbursement for HUSKY members' residential and inpatient substance use treatment, in effect since April 2022. Both programs will be led by the Department of Social Services in collaboration with the Department of Correction, the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, the Department of Children and Families, and the Court Support Services Division of the Judicial Branch.
Department of Correction Commissioner Sharonda Carlos said that for the 12,000 adults and 650 adolescents released from Connecticut's correctional facilities each year, the initiative means people will leave with the support they need to take their medications and keep their appointments, with the goal of not reentering the justice system. State Senator Cathy Osten noted that one-third of Connecticut's incarcerated individuals have active mental health disorders requiring ongoing treatment and 90% have a history of or a current substance use disorder.
(Source: Connecticut Governor's Office)
Source: Connecticut Governor's Office
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于哈特福德的康涅狄格州议会大厦。jglazer75 摄，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Connecticut State Capitol in Hartford. Photo by jglazer75, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
