U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard, based in Jacksonville, has scheduled a trial on May 13th in a lawsuit concerning individuals who were removed from Florida’s Medicaid program following the conclusion of a federal public health emergency declared in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Attorneys representing Medicaid beneficiaries filed a potential class-action lawsuit in August, alleging that the state did not adequately inform individuals before terminating their enrollment in the healthcare program. The basis of the lawsuit lies in the conclusion of the federal public health emergency in the spring of last year.
Medicaid is financed jointly by the federal and state governments, with Washington agreeing to increase its funding for the program during the emergency. However, in return for the additional financial support, states were required to refrain from removing individuals from the Medicaid rolls during the emergency period. Florida’s Medicaid program saw a significant increase in beneficiaries, from approximately 3.8 million in January 2020 to nearly 5.78 million in April 2023, partially due to the inability to drop individuals who might not typically qualify based on income levels.
Following the end of the public health emergency,
