Six states have been selected to participate in a six-month Medicaid and Corrections Policy Academy to improve reentry outcomes for people with complex needs involved in the justice system.
Alaska, Colorado, Maine, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin are participating in the program being run by the Council of State Governments Justice Center and Center for Health Care Strategies, funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance.
In April 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued guidance encouraging states to apply for a Section 1115 Reentry Demonstration Opportunity. This opportunity allows states to apply to cover certain Medicaid services, such as those for substance use disorder and mental health, to eligible individuals up to 90 days prior to their expected release date from incarceration.
Among the goals are to ensure that Medicaid enrollees establish connections to community providers prior to their release from incarceration and to increase the likelihood that they continue to receive treatment for substance use, mental health, and other chronic conditions during this important time. Addressing people’s health needs not only enhances their chances of success during reentry, but also reduces the likelihood of recidivism, ultimately contributing to healthier and safer communities.
The Medicaid and Corrections Policy Academy brings together teams of senior leaders across state Medicaid, corrections, and behavioral health agencies. These leaders will work together virtually and in-person to develop a shared vision for reentry services, build partnerships, and identify strategies to harness Medicaid’s potential to improve to health coverage access, quality of care, and reentry outcomes.
Teams will participate in exercises and discussions that support the development of:
• A shared understanding of how different state systems operate
• Effective enrollment and suspension strategies for people leaving prisons or jails
• Practices to coordinate medical and behavioral health care in the corrections setting
• Reentry best practices
• Reentry planning processes that include housing and other health-related social needs
• Data and information sharing
• Peer connections across states
“The Wisconsin DOC is excited to have been selected to participate in this Medicaid and Corrections Policy Academy,” said Ray Woodruff, reentry director for the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, in a statement. “We are committed to providing opportunities and resources to those who are releasing from our facilities, and this academy will assist us as we develop and enhance policy and practice to better serve clients during the transition from incarceration to the community.”
Legal Action Center (LAC) has created a resource that health and justice stakeholders nationwide can use to learn more about Medicaid reentry work underway in each state, including plans for implementation and opportunities for public engagement.
As of the resource’s launch, more than half of all states have developed or are planning to develop their own Medicaid reentry waivers.
“All of us at LAC are thrilled to see such promising momentum for Medicaid reentry throughout the nation,” says LAC’s Vice President of Health & Justice Policy Gabrielle de la Guéronnière, in a statement. “Ensuring that people returning home from jail and prison can access transitional healthcare is a critical component of public health – and it’s also vital to promoting racial justice. Not only is it well-documented that Black and brown Americans are disproportionately represented in our jails and prisons, but the rates of disease, from hypertension to HIV, are also disproportionately higher among incarcerated populations. Further, untreated mental illnesses and substance use disorders remain notable contributors to the overincarceration of Black and brown people in our country. Until people in reentry can access the lifesaving care they need, we risk perpetuating these devastating and very often deadly systemic inequities. Medicaid reentry presents an opportunity for states to invest in brighter futures for our shared communities, and we hope our resource helps in the effort to implement these waivers in every state.”
