On August 4, Missouri voters approved a ballot measure to expand eligibility for the state’s Medicaid program to 138 percent of the federal poverty level (earning just under $30,000 a year for a family of three). Approximately 200,000 Missourians will become eligible under the expansion, according to the Missouri Hospital Association.

Being eligible and actually enrolling, however, are two different things.

Nationally, there are millions of Americans eligible for Medicaid but are unenrolled either because they don’t know they are eligible or the enrollment process itself is an obstacle. These individuals unnecessarily remain uninsured and contribute to hospitals’ uncompensated care costs.

In states like Missouri and Oklahoma with a history of rejecting Medicaid expansion, getting the word out about new eligibility opportunities can be additionally challenging because of the longstanding understanding about who is eligible. Frequent and consistent outreach and education are vital to enrollment of newly Medicaid-eligible individuals so that expansion of Medicaid eligibility becomes expansion of Medicaid enrollment and coverage.

Cadre Enrollment can help.

Cadre Enrollment works with hospitals to quickly and securely screen 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. And, the enrollment specialists coordinate all needed documentation until submission of the completed application and continuously monitor the state’s Medicaid agency for approval.

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. In addition, 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.

With more Americans becoming eligible for Medicaid, either because of job loss and income reduction or because of eligibility expansions, converting an eligible individual to an enrolled individual is a critical step in reducing the number of uninsured and hospitals’ uncompensated care costs.