COVID-19 Updates - Information You Can Use - Children's Defense Fund Southern Regional Office

How the Families First Act Helps You and Your Family with Coronavirus Related HEALTH CARE.

If you have Private Insurance, an ObamaCare Plan or Employer Provided Insurance

Mandatory Coverage for Coronavirus Testing and Treatment: The Act requires all private health plans to provide coverage for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, including the cost of a provider, urgent care center and emergency room visits in order to receive testing. Coverage must be provided at no cost to the consumer.

If you or a family member are covered under Medicaid or CHIP

Mandatory Coverage for Coronavirus Testing and Treatment. The Act requires Medicaid to provide coverage for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, including the cost of a provider visit in order to receive testing. Coverage must be provided at no cost to the beneficiary.

If you are uninsured it is important that you get tested at no cost.

Medicaid can help the uninsured with testing. The Act allows states to expand Medicaid coverage to the uninsured to cover just coronavirus testing. The Governor would have to affirmatively take this up. Key here, though, is it covers just testing, so is absolutely not a substitute for Medicaid expansion. Work continues to include treatment costs in future federal legislation.

If a state fails to expand Medicaid. The Act provides $1 billion in federal public health funding that would be available to reimburse providers for providing COVID-19 related services to the uninsured. This is for anyone who is uninsured.

Financial Help for States through Medicaid.

The Act provides states with additional Medicaid funding. Each state will receive an additional 6.2% increase in its federal Medicaid match rate. For a state like Mississippi, that means an additional $380 million to cover health care costs. States will be required to maintain current enrollment and the Divisions of Medicaid should end any redetermination efforts that cause children or parents to lose coverage.

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How the Families First Act Helps You and Your Family with Emergency PAID LEAVE.

To slow the spread of Coronavirus many people are staying home. If you are unable to work due to this emergency, the Families First Act does provide a paid leave program that will assist many families.

Who qualifies for the paid leave program:

Eligible workers will receive a benefit for a month (up to three months) in which they must take 14 or more days of leave from their work due to the qualifying COVID-19-related reasons. Eligible employees will be those who have worked for at least 30 days at an employer with less than 500 employees. There are also possible exceptions for health care employers. If you are an eligible employee, you can receive paid leave for the following reasons:

You are diagnosed with COVID-19.
You are quarantined (including self-imposed quarantine), at the instruction of a health care provider, employer, or government official, to prevent the spread of COVID19.
You are caring for another person who has COVID-19 or who is under a quarantine related to COVID-19.
You are caring for a child or other individual who is unable to care for themselves due to the COVID-19-related closing of their school, child care facility, or other care b program.

What benefits can you qualify for:

Benefit amount: Two-thirds of the individual’s average monthly earnings (based on the most recent year of wages or self-employment income for which records are readily available), up to a cap of $4,000.

Program and benefit period: The benefits will be available for leave that occurs from January 19, 2020 (the date of the first U.S. COVID-19 diagnosis) through one year after the bill’s enactment.

Retroactive benefits: Benefits can be paid retroactively, and applications can be filed up to 6 months after enactment.

Application: The Social Security Administration (SSA) will administer this program. Applications will be taken online, by phone, or by mail. Individuals will not visit SSA field offices to apply. Payments will in most cases be issued electronically.

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Families First Act Coronavirus Response Act and FOOD INSECURITY

The Families First Act does provide new assistance programs and makes it easier for states to directly assist families. Below is a summary of nutrition and SNAP related provisions, including actions states must pursue to make these programs available to families in need.

How the Families First Act expands SNAP Benefits to help you:

The Act provides emergency SNAP Benefits for families with children out of school due to the COVID-19 emergency. Families with a child that qualifies for free or reduced lunch may receive supplemental SNAP (food stamp) benefits. The USDA will set the dollar amount for the supplement, but it must reflect the value of the meals students fail to receive due to school closures. These new benefits are at no costs to the state.