State Mistakenly Drops Medi-Cal Coverage for Some Low-Income Californians

As the coronavirus continues to sicken Californians, the state mistakenly terminated or reduced health insurance benefits for thousands of low-income people.

A spokesperson for the California Department of Health Care Services, which oversees the Medi-Cal program, the state’s version of Medicaid, said on Tuesday it is still assessing how many people may have been affected. Yet, so far, it has sent notices to 200,000.

Meanwhile, attorneys with community legal aid groups say they continue to hear from people, suddenly without coverage, usually around the first of the month.

“DHCS is working with counties to assist with follow-up work to ensure that those who were removed in error are re-enrolled as quickly as possible,” Cava said.