Where the overall economy has remained somewhat buoyed by a government safety net, job losses are mounting, and hospitals are facing a growing financial fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Announced in July, 5.4 million laid-off workers have lost health insurance coverage – a 39 percent increase in the number of uninsured, an amount greater than any previous annual increase ever recorded.

According to the study released by Families USA,  almost half of the insurance coverage losses occurred in just five states: California, Texas, Florida, New York and North Carolina. Three of those already had 20 percent or more of its population without coverage.

And without federal legislation to preserve or restore health insurance coverage, the outlook for the uninsured and for hospitals looks bleak. Hospital losses from COVID-19 are conservatively estimated at $320 billion for 2020 alone, according to the American Hospital Association.

Financial support for hospitals will be crucial.

As a result, hospital finance teams are going to be pushed to identify funding opportunities for uninsured patients while other parts of the organization will be tasked with managing care and keeping patients out of the hospital. Cadre Enrollment can help. Cadre Enrollment quickly and securely screens uninsured patients for eligibility for more than 1,600 health insurance and other public programs nationwide, including Medicaid and marketplace coverage. Over 16 months, the platform identified 81 percent of uninsured patients as eligible for Medicaid in states that expanded Medicaid under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act and 50 percent as eligible in non-expansion states.

While many hospitals already have internal or outsourced eligibility and enrollment staff or resources, Cadre Enrollment’s platform is unmatched in its 95+ percent accuracy rate for Medicaid eligibility. And, in identifying other programs and benefits for which uninsured patients are eligible, the platform delivers an array of health and related supports for uninsured patients to keep them healthy and secure. At a time when hospitals have no room for error or waste, Cadre Enrollment delivers results and value.