As COVID-19 Medicaid eligibility wound down, what happened to those losing coverage? In a study published in Health Affairs co-authored by Kate Bundorf, researchers examined the impact of Medicaid unwinding following the March 2023 end of the COVID-19 continuous coverage requirement. Analyzing Census Bureau data, they found that Medicaid enrollment dropped by approximately two million people within three months. However, the decline in overall insurance coverage was smaller, at about 467,000, likely due to transitions to employer-sponsored or private insurance. These findings underscore the importance of monitoring coverage shifts to identify at-risk populations and improve state outreach efforts, particularly for Marketplace plans.
