DC Medicaid Renewal & New Medicaid Managed Care Organization

May 1, 2023 by Elyssa Clauson, MPH

The Children’s National Community Mental Health CORE policy team has created informational flyers to provide relevant information and action steps to medical providers and beneficiaries on important and timely information regarding DC Medicaid. These informational flyers are informed by resources from the DC Department of Health Care Finance and are now posted on DC Health Check, a training and resource hub for health care providers in the District of Columbia on the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) benefit.   

Medicaid Renewal

During the public health emergency, the District of Columbia has not required Medicaid beneficiaries to renew their health coverage on a regular basis. Starting April 1, 2023, Medicaid beneficiaries will have the chance to review their health coverage or be at risk of losing their coverage. The flyer gives specific instructions on how beneficiaries can update their contact information via District Direct and how providers can help assist patients and families in this process. The Stakeholder Communications Toolkit, created by DHCF, expands on the information provided in the flyer and contains helpful graphics for providers to share. These graphics can be accessed in English, Spanish, Amharic, Chinese, French, Korean, and Vietnamese.  

The Informational Flyer on Medicaid Renewal can be found here: 04-23-Medicaid-Renewal-Childrens-Flyer.pdf (dchealthcheck.net)

New DC Medicaid Managed Care Organization Effective April 1, 2023

Effective April 1, 2023, the District will execute three new Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MCO) contracts to provide health care services to eligible residents. The three MCOs are AmeriHealth Caritas, DC (AmeriHealth), MedStar Family Choice, DC (MedStar) and Amerigroup DC (Amerigroup). CareFirst Community Health Plan, DC (CareFirst), will no longer participate in the District’s Medicaid Managed Care Program (MMCP). The MMCP consists of individuals enrolled in the DC Healthy Families Program (DCHFP), Immigrant Children’s Program (ICP) and the DC Healthcare Alliance (Alliance). On April 1, 2023, all CareFirst enrollees will be automatically assigned to Amerigroup. Enrollees have until June 30, 2023, to select a new MCO of choice if dissatisfied with the auto-assignment. 

This flyer provides important information for both CareFirst enrollees, as well as Medicaid beneficiaries that would like to switch to a different MCO during open enrollment through June 30, 2023. It also ensures that providers have up to date information regarding the transition. 

The Informational Flyer on the New DC Medicaid MCO can be found here: 04-23-MCO-Transition-Childrens-Info.pdf (dchealthcheck.net) 

Header photo by Leeloo Thefirst from Pexels.com

About the author

Elyssa Clauson, MPH

Policy Associate for the Community Mental Health CORE within the Child Health Advocacy Institute at Children's National Hospital