States require managed care plans who serve Medicaid enrollees to establish and maintain an internal grievance and appeal and fair hearing system. As states begin to incorporate new federal regulations into their Medicaid rules, there’s opportunity for advocates to help shape those rules to ensure that older adults and people with disabilities have equal access to the grievance and appeal and state fair hearing systems, as mandated by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (“Rehab Act”), the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”).
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), Justice in Aging and National Health Law Program (NHeLP) collaborated on a new Advocates Guide to Accessibility in Medicaid Managed Care Grievances, Appeals, and State Fair Hearing. This new Advocates’ Guide, provides guidance on how the federal framework can be made fully accessible to Medicaid beneficiaries who are older and/or have disabilities.
Links to three accessible versions of the guide can be found below.
