Medicaid Eligibility and Enrollment Rules Lay Framework for Program Improvements States Can Still Adopt, Despite Moratorium
This report explains how states can continue to voluntarily implement key Medicaid and CHIP eligibility and enrollment improvements—originally required by two federal rules—despite a ten-year moratorium enacted in July 2025 that blocks their mandatory enforcement
The brief outlines which provisions from the 2023 and 2024 “streamlining” rules remain in effect, which are blocked but still optional for states, and which are now prohibited.
While Congress’s moratorium halts federal mandates to simplify Medicaid and CHIP enrollment, the report emphasizes that states retain broad flexibility to adopt the same practices voluntarily—such as aligning eligibility processes for seniors, people with disabilities, and children; reducing paperwork through self-attestation; and automating cross-program enrollment. CBPP urges states to proceed with these now-optional policies to reduce administrative burden, increase efficiency, and ensure more eligible residents retain coverage despite the federal rollback
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