This year for the first time, Medicaid recipients have the possibility of being automatically re-enrolled in the program.
Known as an 'administrative review', the Mississippi Division of Medicaid can automatically re-enroll a recipient if they have or can retrieve enough information about their income.
Janice Bond, the deputy administrator for eligibility with Medicaid, says the change comes as part of the federal health care reform law.
"An administrative review is first attempted for renewals. If we are able to use information from the record and electronic data sources to verify income. Than we do an administrative review and approve the family," Bond said.
For January, about 60-percent of recipients were approved via 'administrative review'.
That means they simply received a letter from Medicaid explaining they have been authorized for another year without filling out any form or going to a Medicaid office.
Bond says the remaining recipients will receive a form asking for the missing information that they can send back to the Division.
"They can email the form through our web site. They can fax it to a fax number at our office that is on our web site. They can certainly mail it or bring it in person. And they can receive telephone assistance," Bond said.
Bond says they are working on a web site that will allow online renewal.
That is set to launch later this year.
