States Respond to COVID-19 Challenges but Also Take Advantage of New Opportunities to Address Long-Standing Issues

This report highlights certain policies in place in state Medicaid programs in state fiscal year (FY) 2021 and policy changes implemented or planned for FY 2022, which began on July 1, 2021 for most states; we also highlight state experiences with policies adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings are drawn from the 21st annual budget survey of Medicaid officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) and Health Management Associates (HMA), in collaboration with the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD). States completed this survey in mid-summer of 2021, following increased vaccination rates and declining COVID-19 cases but just prior to a new wave of COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, and deaths driven by the highly contagious Delta variant. Overall, 47 states responded to this year’s survey, although response rates for specific questions varied. This report summarizes key findings across five sections: delivery systems, benefits and telehealth, social determinants of health (which also includes information on health equity and COVID-19 vaccine uptake), provider rates and taxes, and pharmacy