The South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (SCDHHS) is preparing for the resumption of Healthy Connections Medicaid members’ annual reviews. In accordance with the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, annual reviews restarted April 1, 2023.
Our goal, as we work towards the restart of annual reviews, is to minimize the burden on our members and promote continuity of health coverage.
Providers should note that the temporary policy flexibilities SCDHHS created during the public health emergency (PHE), including changes to the state's existing telehealth program, remain tied to the status of the federal COVID-19 PHE. The federal government has announced the PHE will end May 11, 2023. SCDHHS has issued guidance with updates to those flexibilities that is available at www.scdhhs.gov/covid19.
How will we notify members?
The agency will try to renew Medicaid eligibility for members with info we already have. If we can determine a member is still eligible, we will mail a “Continuation of Benefits” notice to the member. They will not need to complete an annual review form. If we can’t determine eligibility with available data, we will send out an annual review form to complete. The form should be completed and returned by the deadline listed on the letter. This is approximately 30 days from the notice date.
Members should check their mail regularly and follow the instructions in any notice they receive from Healthy Connections Medicaid. We will also post updates on annual reviews on our social media channels (@SCMedicaid on Facebook and Twitter) and this website. We will also text members (if we have their cell phone number) to let them know it is time to complete their annual review form. The texts will come from (803) 879-4184.
How can you help?
Providers and partners can help by relaying consistent and simple messages to Medicaid members. We have materials to help communicate with Medicaid members in our communications toolkit. The toolkit is posted on the Resources page of this site. These resources include a provider fact sheet to help answer any questions you may have.
Still have questions or need more help?
For added help, please contact the Provider Service Center from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday. You can also email AnnualReviews@scdhhs.gov.
Please email AnnualReviews@scdhhs.gov if you would like someone from the agency to present to your organization about annual reviews.
COVID-19 Policy Flexibilities
Guidance on Medicaid policy flexibilities that were issued specific to the federal PHE is available at www.scdhhs.gov/covid19. Please email COVID@scdhhs.gov with questions about COVID-19 policy flexibilities.
