What’s changing for AHCCCS?
Kohler said the consequences of Trump’s sweeping HR 1 legislation are already being felt, but knowing who exactly could be affected by the new Medicaid provisions remains up in the air.
“The individuals who will be impacted by the work requirements, for example, are people in specific federal eligibility categories that basically are working-age adults without dependent children and who are not seniors,” Kohler said, adding that she doesn’t believe most people will be impacted at all.
According to an email statement from AHCCCS, the agency “is focused on complying with evolving federal and state requirements while minimizing disruption for members and providers.”
“Compliance involves a combination of policy, operational, and system-level updates, including adjusting existing eligibility and renewing business rules, refining verification logic, and enhancing reporting and audit capabilities within current platforms,” the statement added.
AHCCCS is also in the midst of a modernization process that aims to speed up claim processing, strengthen confidential health data — through HIPAA and HITRUST — and improve overall efficiency.
“These systems provide stronger access controls, improved monitoring, and greater reliability to better protect sensitive member information,” according to the email from AHCCCS.
“They’ve been working with a system that’s needed some updating for some time. And those are really important things, especially for access to public benefits,” Derksen said.
These changes, Kohler said, will likely come after the midterm elections, depending on what politicians campaign on in relation to the program.