Over 37,000 people in the region will be affected by a change in Medicaid participation by Excellus BlueCross Blue Shield. The insurance provider has announced that beginning January 1st, it will no long participate in Medicaid managed care and Family Health Plus health insurance programs. Last month Excellus told the New York State Department of Health that it had plans to drop out of the program in 25 counties statewide beginning next year.
The change will affect nearly 219,000 New Yorkers from the North Country down into the Southern Tier. Individuals will still be covered, but the insurance will have to come from another provider. Excellus would still continue offering Child Health Plus statewide, and Medicare plans would not be affected by the change.
Excellus is incurring losses close to $100 million for 2013 on the two programs, and the amount is expected to increase for next year, making the programs unsustainable for the company to continue. Medicaid is a state and federal program for low-income individuals and Family Health Plus is for adults ages 19 to 64 whose income is too high to qualify for Medicaid.
According to the Health Department, alternative managed-care plans will be made available in most counties to help residents transition to a different provider if needed.
