Criminal Defense Attorney in Georgetown, GA.

Children accounted for about two-thirds of the nearly 96,000 Georgians who lost their Medicaid coverage last month as part of the nationwide unwinding of a pandemic-era federal policy.

And most of the children – 63,481 of them – had their health insurance terminated for procedural reasons, according to information provided by the state Department of Community Health in response to a request from the Georgia Recorder.

“To see that 63,000 children lost Medicaid because of just something that went wrong in the process tells me that this is not a process that is sustainable,” said Callan Wells, senior health policy manager with GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students.

“We really need to make major systemic changes so that we’re not seeing 63,000 children losing Medicaid, losing health care coverage, losing the ability to go to the doctor to be treated for their ongoing chronic conditions, missing opportunities for early intervention. We can’t keep doing this,” she said.

Of the 67,454 total children whose Medicaid coverage was terminated last month, about 4,000 were ruled no longer eligible, according to the department’s data.

But the state agencies responsible for the unwinding say some of the enrollees whose coverage was marked as being ensnared in a bureaucratic process were likely also no longer eligible.

Information on file with the state suggested that about 20,000 of the 89,000 total adults and children who were disenrolled last month after not completing the renewal process in time would be ineligible for Medicaid today, according to DCH. For example, they may now earn too much money, live in another state or be too old for the state’s program for children.

“We are anticipating that many of the people who are no longer eligible have aged out of PeachCare for Kids, but we are actively focused on reaching as many Medicaid members as possible, especially children, to ensure they are prepared to go through the redetermination process,” said Kylie Winton, communications director for the Department of Human Services, which is handling the day-to-day work of the unwinding.

These renewals usually happen every year, but states were barred from kicking people off the public health insurance program during the pandemic, which caused Georgia’s Medicaid rolls to swell to 2.7 million people. Now, all states must complete the massive undertaking of reviewing each person’s eligibility by next summer.

Nationally, at least 3.8 million people have been disenrolled across 39 states and DC, according to KFF Health News.

In Georgia, which has one of the highest uninsured rates in the country, as many as 545,000 people could lose their coverage, according to an estimate from last year. A significant number of Georgia children – 40% – are covered by Medicaid, according to Georgetown’s Center for Children and Families.

Last month’s unwinding data represents the first large group of people to go through the process in Georgia, and it showed that more people lost coverage than kept it. When the state reported that monthly data earlier this month, the status of about 60,000 people was still pending – more than half of them children.

Winton said the state continues its efforts to reach families that may be at risk of losing their health insurance, including multiple attempts to contact them by mail, email and text as well as a broad public information campaign. She said there is also a push to inform Medicaid enrollees that they have 90 days from their redetermination date to submit their paperwork and potentially regain coverage and, for those who are no longer eligible, highlight other coverage options.

“All Georgians who are eligible for Medicaid should have the opportunity to retain their coverage, and that’s why the state has leveraged multiple waivers from the federal government to improve our processes, hired hundreds of new staff, and worked to increase our phone system capacity,” Winton said Friday. “We are listening to the community and working through the challenges that members are encountering.”

The state has applied for seven waivers designed to cut down the number of procedural denials, allowing the state to do things like accept updated contact information from managed care plans, according to Winton.

Caylee Noggle, the outgoing commissioner of the Department of Community Health, which administers the Medicaid program in Georgia, told members of the Board of Community Health earlier this month that her agency also planned to target back-to-school registration as an outreach opportunity.

“We are committed to continuing to do all that we can to make sure that no one loses coverage who should have either the ability to remain on Medicaid or to get connected either to Pathways or to the marketplace or some other coverage option,” Noggle said.

Pathways is Gov. Brian Kemp’s plan to slightly expand Medicaid for low-income Georgians who complete 80 hours of work or qualifying activity each month to gain and keep coverage. That program, which launched this month, could enroll as many as 100,000 people, according to a state estimate.

But health policy experts say the unwinding of the pandemic-era rule is also bringing new attention to an arduous process that has long left Georgia’s youngest residents vulnerable to potentially inconsistent Medicaid coverage.

In the long term, Wells advocates for ending the renewal requirement for children up to the age of six.

Wells and others are also urging the state to lean more on local organizations that can act as trusted messengers in their communities to raise awareness of the redetermination process and help those who are eligible keep their coverage.

And they are pushing back on the perception some have that a procedural denial must be the fault of the individual.

“This is a very onerous process littered with landmines and there’s so many barriers along the way to completing the process. It’s not all on the family. It’s a process that’s just not a very person-centered process in the first place,” said Leah Chan, director of health justice with the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, adding that low public awareness of the unwinding also remains a concern.

Chan said she hopes state agencies will adjust when troubling trend lines appear in the monthly data, such as the early numbers showing a disproportionate number of children losing coverage.

“This is not an immovable situation. We have the tools to see this data and make sure this is not what the data looks like in the months to come,” Chan said.

If someone thinks their coverage was cut off in error, they have 30 days to appeal the decision. And if someone loses Medicaid coverage because they did not complete the renewal process in time, they have 90 days to submit updated proof of eligibility to have their coverage retroactively restored.

For more information about the unwinding, visit staycovered.ga.gov. More information about Georgia Pathways can be found here.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST.

ATLANTA, Ga. – Georgia Tech women’s basketball associate head coach and defensive coordinator Tasha Butts has been named the new women’s basketball head coach at Georgetown University, the school announced Tuesday.

“We wish Tasha the very best in her first head coaching opportunity at Georgetown University,” commented Georgia Tech head coach Nell Fortner. “We believe she will thrive and are super excited for this opportunity for her. It’s been a pleasure working with Tasha, and we wish her nothing but the best.”

In four years with the Yellow Jackets, Butts helped guide Georgia Tech to two NCAA Tournament appearances, two 20-plus win campaigns, nine wins over ranked opponents and the program’s highest outright Atlantic Coast Conference finish in program history at No. 3 in 2021.

During the 2021-22 season, Georgia Tech spent 14 weeks in the national rankings, climbing as high as No. 11 in the Associated Press poll. The Yellow Jackets recorded a marquee win in 2021 when they defeated No. 3/2 UConn, 57-44, in McCamish Pavilion, snapping the Huskies’ 240-game winning streak against unranked opponents. The win marked Tech’s first over a top-three opponent since 2009. The Yellow Jackets capped the season by making their second-straight NCAA Tournament appearance.

Butts helped Georgia Tech to a 2020-21 season meant for the record books as the Yellow Jackets made their 10^th overall NCAA Tournament appearance and advanced to the Sweet 16 for just the second time in program history. The Yellow Jackets finished third in the ACC to earn the program’s highest seeding in the ACC Tournament at No. 3.

Off the court, Butts was selected to the ABIS Women’s Basketball Black College Coaches Watch List in 2023 and was the recipient of the 2023 Giant Steps Award as an individual who has shown courage, heroism, triumph amid adversity and community activism through the power of sport.

A coaching veteran and former WNBA player, Butts arrived on The Flats with Fortner in 2019. She was promoted to associate head coach in April 2021 and added the title of defensive coordinator ahead of the 2022-23 season. A Georgia native, Butts returned to the Peach State after eight years as an assistant coach at LSU.

Butts becomes the 11th head coach in Georgetown women’s basketball history and will be introduced to the Georgetown community later today.

Alexander-Tharpe Fund

The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.

For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter (@GTWBB), Instagram (GTWBB), Facebook (Georgia Tech Women’s Basketball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.

Georgia DOT continues essential road work throughout Southeast Georgia. As a result, work on construction and maintenance projects will continue Saturday, June 17 through Friday, June 23.

All work subject to change due to weather or other factors. Motorists are cautioned to reduce their speed while traveling thru work zones, pay attention and watch for workers.

Traffic interruptions are listed below by interstates, categories, and counties.

Interstate 95

I-95 McIntosh County Champney R. Bridge (MP 45.5) to Darien R. Bridge (MP 49.0) Lane Closures Monday- Thursday 7pm-7am & Weekends – Friday 9pm until Monday 5am Bridge Maintenance/Rehabilitation thru October 2023

I-95 at MP 68 – MP 78 Liberty & Bryan Counties Installation of Cable Barrier Inside Shoulder Closures Daily

I-95 at MP 81 – MP 90 Liberty & Bryan Counties Installation of Cable Barrier Inside Shoulder Closures Daily

Interstate 16

I-16 (in the Vicinity of SR 307) Chatham County Lane Closures for DDI Construction on I-16 & SR 307 Monday – Saturday · I-16 Eastbound from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. · I-16 Westbound from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. · SR 307 North from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. · SR 307 South from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Continues thru end of June 2023

Bridge & Road Closures with Detours

SR 169 at Canoochee River Bridge Evans County Road Closure June 12 for Bridge Replacement Expected to Reopen March 2024 Detour via US 301, US 280, SR 129

SR 520 at Satilla River Overflow Bridge Brantley County Lane Closures for Bridge Replacement Expected to Reopen July 2024 Single Lane Traffic in Both Directions thru Work Zone On-site Detour: WB Traffic Shift to EB Bridge

Ten Mile Church Road at 10 Mile Creek Bacon County Road Closure for Bridge Replacement Expected to Reopen in July 2023 Detour via Radio Station Rd, S Pierce St., SR 32, SR 203

Bell Telephone Road Jeff Davis County Road Closure for Bridge Replacement Expected to Reopen July 2023 Detour via Ira Graham Rd, Bridgeford Church Rd, Philadelphia Church Rd, Taylor Rd, Post Rd

Bridge Construction, Rehabilitation, and Maintenance

State Route 25 Chatham County Appleby Road (MP 19) to the South Carolina State Line Alternating Lane Closures for Bridge Construction Monday – Saturday 9am to 4pm

US 80 @ Lazaretto Creek Bridge Chatham County Overnight lane closure 9 pm Monday thru 6 am Tuesday Preliminary work for the future bridge replacement

SR 25 at Houlihan Bridge Chatham County Single lane closure utilizing traffic signals Bridge repair timeline TBD Alternate route via SR 25, SR 30, SR 21, I-95, US 17

Resurfacing

SR 204/ Abercorn St Chatham County From Georgetown Exit to Stephenson Ave Lane Closures for Asphalt Resurfacing Sunday – Friday 7pm to 6am

SR 26/HWY 80 Chatham County From Bourne Ave to Wilkes Street Daily/Nightly Lane Closures 9pm to 6am

SR 196/SR 119 Liberty County From Gate 1 to Gate 5 (MP 4.67 to 7.15) Lane Closures 7pm to 5am Friday – Saturday

SR 119 Liberty County From Airport Rd to SR 138 (MP.0 to 4.67) Lane Closures 7pm to 5am Friday – Saturday

SR 39/ Old Sunbury Road Liberty County From Joseph Martin Rd to Old Hines Rd Nightly Lane Closures for Pipe Installation 7pm to 6am Sunday – Friday

SR 30 Evans County Tattnall/Evans County Line to Cedar St. Daily Lane Closure 7am to 7pm 4/24/23 – 6/30/23

Old Highway 250 Tattnall County Mainline Left/Right Lane Closed due to Shoulder Widening Monday – Saturday 7am to 8pm Starting 2/27/2023 – 9/30/2023

SR 67 Bypass Bulloch County Fair Road to SR 26/US80 Daily Lane Closure 7am to 8pm Resurfacing 3/20/2023 – 6/30/2023

SR130 Montgomery/Toombs County From SR135 to US1/SR4 Daily Lane Closures 7am to 7pm 4/3/2023 – 6/31/2023

SR 303 Glynn County From SR 520 to SR 25 Daily Lane Closures 7pm to 6am 4/16/2023 – 8/31/2023

SR 25 Camden County From Florida Line to MLK Blvd (Kingsland) Daily Lane Closures Nightly Lane Closures within City Limits 7pm to 5am 5/5/2023 – 12/31/2023

SR 21 Effingham County North of Dewitt Rd to Screven Co. Line Milling & Resurfacing Daily Flagging Operation (Detour, Lane Shift) Monday thru Sunday 7am – 8pm Starting 6/5/2023 – 6/30/2023

SR 144 Tattnall County From SR 73/US 301 to Beards Creek Bridge Daily Lane Closures 7am to 5pm Milling and Resurfacing Starting 6/10/23 – 7/31/23

Other Traffic Interruptions

SR 169 Evans County From SR 129 to Riverside Drive Brewton Park Boat Ramp Access will Remain Open to Public

SR23/SR57 Tattnall County From SR169 to SR121 Daily Lane Closures for Road Widening 8am to 3pm Starting 12/20/2022 – 12/10/2023

SR4/US1 Toombs County Traffic Shift to New Alignment M.P. 8.2 and M.P. 11.7 Tuesday June 20, 2023

SR 21/SR 30 Chatham County I-95/SR 405 to Berrien Rd Nightly Lane Closures for Work on Striping Monday – Friday 7pm to 6am

SR 40 Camden County West of Grove Blvd to East of Truss Plant Road Widening and Reconstruction for Additional Turn Lanes Lane Closures Monday thru Friday, 7am to 5pm Ends 9/30/2023

SR 25/Burnsed Blvd. Chatham County US 80/Burnsed Blvd. and SR 25/Brampton Rd. Road Widening & Paving Operations Lane Closures Mon. – Fri. 7am to 6pm

the intersection of SR 25. Traffic will move to the southbound lanes, which will become one lane in each direction.

needing access to Foundation Drive.

SR 25/US 17 Glynn County Yacht Road to Harry Driggers Blvd Lane Closures for Widening and Reconstruction Monday thru Friday, 9am to 4pm & 6pm to 7am, Expected completion 2^nd Quarter 2024

ATLANTA — In a new letter from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, federal regulators show their concern about Georgia’s administration of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which serves the nutrition needs of low-income families. The letter indicates the state is not meeting federal requirements and includes recommendations to address the backlog amid concerns the issue will continue into the fall.

Georgia, meanwhile, continues its push for more technology to ease the process, indicating the state feels held back as the USDA warns AI and bots could potentially worsen the situation.

The federal government and state’s positions are laid out in a pair of letters, the first of which is dated August 24 and sent from the USDA to Georgia Department of Human Services Commissioner Candice Broce. The letter states Georgia’s “extensive recertification processing backlog is causing multiple-month-long delays for current SNAP households to receive their benefits.”

RELATED: SNAP BACKLOG: Georgia reports progress, feds say they 'continue to be concerned'

The USDA believes the most recent backlog, which 11Alive began reporting on in June, is due in part to staffing issues and Georgia’s “failure to properly manage workload" - a workload worsened, according to the USDA, by the state’s requests for several federal waivers from October 2022 thru February 2023. The waivers allowed for the continuation of benefits for Georgians as the USDA said the state dealt with a range of problems including a “system security issue,” customer portal access, as well as severe storms that prevented families in seven counties from renewing on time.

“FNS advised the State to distribute the cases in a way to even out the number of recertifications due over the 6-month period, and the State confirmed they would do so to the best of their ability,” the letter states. “FNS is concerned that Georgia extended these certification periods without putting workload management controls in place, thus contributing the backlog.”

The state meanwhile argues they have "exhausted our options within the bounds of our authority" and "need our federal partners to take action" in approving waivers for technology they assert would go a long way toward alleviating the backlog, because "no state can hire its way out of this crisis."

Left in limbo in the middle of this back-and-forth are the families whose SNAP benefits have been held up.

“SNAP helps families put nutritious food on the table. When SNAP benefits are delayed or taken away, it does real harm,” Ty Jones, Vice President for Food Assistance for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said. “A mom may be forced to choose between paying the bills and feeding her family. A child may go to bed hungry. And over time we know that not getting enough nutritious food to eat affects a child’s health and how well they do in school.”

Full FNS letter, Aug 24, 2023

Full Georgia response, Aug. 30, 2023

Download this PDF

of 5

USDA AND GEORGIA AT ODDS OVER SOLUTIONS

To date, talks of solutions have been ongoing, a spokesperson from the USDA FNS emphasized to 11Alive.

The letter from the USDA also lays out a series of recommendations for the state, one of which includes Georgia opting for a 12-month certification process, in lieu of a 6-month certification period. The flexibility has been an option for states for more than a decade, Georgetown Law professor and policy expert David Super said.

“The simple solution to me is if you want to do less with recertifications, why don't you just do half as many and then you'll have the resources to do them properly,” Super said.

In her August 30 response, Commissioner Broce said Georgia is already working on some of the USDA’s recommendations, citing that DHS opted to extend certification periods for select SNAP groups, as the agency explores whether to do the same for other households.

Broce also addressed staffing concerns in response to the USDA highlighting what it said was a 70% retention rate. The commissioner said the department has hired 700 employees since January, adding the agency is seeing a lower turnover rate compared to last year.

RELATED: Overtime hours on the way to help with Georgia SNAP backlog, two months after request

Separately, DHS presented that progress in a recent Aug. 30 DFCS State Advisory Board Meeting, showing an improvement in recent months in frontline staffing numbers and caseload levels. The average caseload in July was 981, compared to more than 1,100 in April 2023.

“I must reiterate that no state can hire its way out of this crisis,” the commissioner’s letter to the USDA said. “We have poured our blood, sweat, and tears into hiring and retention. We have raised pay, solicited feedback, kept you apprised at every turn, and recognized where we need improvements. We have exhausted our options within the bound of our authority. We need our federal partners to take action.”

That call for action - Georgia’s push for automation for parts of the SNAP certification process - nevertheless remains a sticking point between the two agencies. Broce writes that “more BOT technology is the right path forward,” a plan she said has staff support, while the USDA FNS tells 11Alive federal regulators do not think bots are the answer.

“While FNS supports innovation and modernization in the program, FNS does not believe that outsourcing most of Georgia’s SNAP application processing to automation will address the root causes of poor timelines the state is experiencing,” a statement reads. “In 2020, the state began using automated programs for some components of its application processing as part of a pilot program, and the data shows errors and processing delays increased. Therefore, we do not believe additional use of bots will help Georgia resolve its challenges and may even make the problem worse. FNS believes Georgia must address underlying policy and operational issues first as a priority.”

The commissioner disputes such a position in her letter, including a graph showing “historic error rates for BOT-assisted cases are dramatically lower than non-BOT-assisted cases except for a mere three months’ time, which is easily distinguishable due to small sample sizes.”

NEXT STEPS

The USDA said there’s no given timeline at this point for which Georgia must report improvements, and a spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Human Services said state leaders have not yet heard back from the federal agency.

However, Super said that if such problems persist, Georgia risks losing federal administrative funds for the program.

“For now, FNS is trying to work in a positive way with the state,” Super said after reviewing the two letters. “But the degree to which the state is out of compliance is going to force FNS to act against the state fairly soon, the same way they have in the past.”

As for how many states have received letters like this? The USDA would not answer that question, but Super said in his experience, only a handful of states reach this stage each year.

“It's intended to be a big deal,” he said.

Georgia, for its part, takes the position in Broce's letter that the state has legal ground to move ahead with the bot technology with or without federal approval, but that, "Georgia wishes to pursue SNAP ex parte waiver implementation with FNS leadership’s vocal support."

11Alive viewers who want to speak with a reporter about the delays can email the newsroom.

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