More than 83,000 Tennesseans have been added to the TennCare rolls since March in one sign of a slide into poverty experienced by many individuals, especially children, as a result of the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.
Children’s enrollment increased the fastest, with upwards of 34,000 added to the state’s health insurance program for low-income pregnant women, children and their parents and individuals who are elderly or have a disability, according to data published by TennCare.
Middle Tennessee saw the fastest rise in enrollment compared to other parts of the state and far more women than men were newly enrolled. TennCare, unlike programs in states that have expanded Medicaid, does not automatically enroll individuals because of their income levels. They must be poor and also meet other criteria such as having children or living with a disability.
TennCare Director Stephen Smith said during a budget review with Gov. Bill Lee this past week that those numbers are likely to increase since people often wait until they are experiencing a health problem to apply. Smith also noted that under emergency federal rules states are unable to remove individuals from the program, even if they no longer qualify.
Tennessee‘s TennCare growth – with about 6% more now enrolled in a program with 1.4 million individuals total – is in line with other states, Smith said. One July analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found there was a similar 6% increase across the nation’s Medicaid programs by July. The report cited job losses and the resulting loss of employer-sponsored insurance as key reasons.