Medicaid

The Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids programs provide a safety net for children who may not otherwise have access to health care.

Family Medicaid
Low-income families with children under age 19 may qualify for Family Medicaid. These families may qualify at various income levels depending on family size and income. Families who qualify are entitled to the full range of Medicaid covered services including doctors’ visits, health checkups, immunizations, dental and vision care.

Aged, Blind and Disabled Medicaid Program
The Aged, Blind and Disabled (ABD) Medicaid Program in Georgia serves individuals who are age 65 and older, individuals who are legally blind or individuals who are disabled, as defined by the Social Security Act. There are 19 different coverage categories, known as Classes of Assistance (COA), for the ABD population. An individual’s living arrangement, income, marital status and prior Medicaid eligibility, among other factors, determine the most appropriate COA.

By the Numbers | Medicaid

• In State Fiscal Year 2020 (SFY 2020), 1,111,717 is the average number of children who received medical coverage through Medicaid each month
• 847,698 average number of families that received medical coverage through Medicaid each month
• 551,064 average number of adults who received medical coverage through Medicaid each month
• 132,342 average number of children who received medical coverage through PeachCare each month

Medicaid response to COVID-19 pandemic
On March 1, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued several pandemic policy waivers to states for their Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs eligibility rules.

The Georgia Department of Community Health communicated those rules to DFCS for implementation for all Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids cases.
These Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids policy waivers included the following:

• Using self-attestation and client statements as acceptable verification that would normally require documents from a third party.
• Allowance to exceed timeliness standards for applications and renewals.
• Extension of period of eligibility renewal end dates. Renewals with due dates in the months of March through June 2020 were extended by six months.
• Allowing certain documents to be e-mailed as secure attachments rather than being faxed.
• Not closing or allowing benefit coverage reductions for any active Medicaid or PeachCare for Kids cases except for the reasons of death, moving out-of-state, voluntary closure and financial eligibility for Supplemental Security Income.
• Excluding pandemic stimulus payments and pandemic unemployment compensation from budget calculations.
• Suspending PeachCare for Kids premiums.