Several thousand people with state subsidized health coverage that sunsets at the end of March received a letter earlier in the month from the state telling them incorrectly that coverage would be available through the end of April.
The letter was sent two weeks ago to roughly 3,000 people who had recently contacted the state to update their information, according to the Department of Vermont Health Access.
Vermonters on VHAP or Catamount have until March 31 to select a plan through Vermont Health Connect, the state’s insurance exchange, in order to avoid a gap in their health coverage.
However, they have an additional 60 days to sign up for coverage after the March 31 open enrollment deadline.
The mistake was the result of a “generation error with our legacy Medicaid system,” said Emily Yahr, a spokeswoman for the Department of Vermont Health Access.
“Legacy” is a polite term for outdated technology systems. Vermont’s chief information officer has estimated that 70 percent of the state’s IT systems are legacy.
The state has made a significant effort to reach Vermonters who are insured through VHAP and Catamount and were not automatically transitioned to Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.
The state did not send a message to the recipients formally correcting the mistake, but has since sent postcards, emails and called the recipients directly to deliver messages that reinforce the correct end date for VHAP and Catamount coverage, Yahr said.
Peter Sterling, with the single-payer advocacy group Vermont Leads, said it’s unfortunate that DVHA made the mistake, but the direct outreach is indicative of how hard the state is working to make people on Catamount and VHAP understand they need to get coverage or go uninsured.
With VHAP and Catamount, Vermonters could cycle in and out of coverage month to month, but now if they don’t enroll in a 2014 Vermont Health Connect plan, they face being uninsured until the next open enrollment period in November.
In December of last year there were 51,011 Vermonters on VHAP or Catamount. Nearly 66 percent, or 33,549, were automatically transitioned to Medicaid, according to figures from the state.
The remaining 17,642 were allowed to stay on VHAP and Catamount for an additional three months.
The latest figures from the state show that of that group 4,297 have yet to begin the application process for coverage through Vermont Health Connect. It’s unclear how many of those yet to apply received the erroneous letter.
Advocates have said that some people on VHAP and Catamount may not be enrolling because they’re worried they can’t afford the higher co-pays and deductibles.
The state is encouraging them to apply anyway because it’s possible they will discover they qualify for Medicaid.