From the Office of Governor Robert Bentley
MONTGOMERY— Governor Robert Bentley announced today the Alabama Medicaid Agency will receive a $19 million federal performance bonus for the effectiveness of its innovative and user-friendly methods to enroll more low-income children in Medicaid during the 2011 Fiscal Year. Alabama is one of 23 states receiving a performance bonus this year from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“For three consecutive years, Alabama has received this performance bonus for its ongoing efforts to identify and enroll eligible children in Medicaid,” said Governor Robert Bentley. “Alabama is helping families who are struggling to provide basic health insurance for their children. The staffs at the Alabama Medicaid Agency, the Department of Human Resources and the Alabama Department of Public Health have done an outstanding job partnering together to enroll children in Medicaid.”
The federal performance bonus recognizes states which have implemented at least five of eight program features known to promote enrollment and retention in children’s health insurance coverage and have increased state Medicaid enrollment above a target set by federal law. The bonus payments were part of the 2009 Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization (CHIPRA) legislation signed into law in February 2009.
Alabama Medicaid Commissioner R. Bob Mullins, Jr., M.D. commented that the Medicaid eligibility workers were instrumental in enrolling qualified children into Medicaid.
“At a time when state government is asked to do more with less, I particularly want to commend our eligibility workers who have gone the extra mile to enroll qualified children despite having one of the highest caseloads in the country,” said Mullins.
The amount of the payment was calculated based on the level of enrollment success and per capita State Medicaid expenditures for children. States were also eligible for an enhanced payment once they exceeded a certain percentage enrollment increase. To qualify, the changes had to be implemented by both Medicaid and ALL Kids, the state’s CHIP program.
