Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, state prisons are releasing some inmates early. Securing health care is one of the many challenges former inmates face when re-establishing their lives in their communities. For this reason, our partners at Justice in Aging created a new guide for advocates to help formerly incarcerated people who are 65 or older or younger with a disability to connect or reconnect with their Medicare and/or Medi-Cal benefits. Entitled Medicare and People Leaving Incarceration: A Primer for California Advocates During the Pandemic, this guide discusses policies of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) that particularly impact Medicare eligibility, enrollment, and premiums for people leaving custody. It also discusses how Medi-Cal programs can help formerly incarcerated low-income individuals afford their Medicare benefits, including policies related to the COVID-19 emergency.
Read the full guide here.
