Termination of New York State Disaster Emergency Period Announced
7/12/2021
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Posted by Provider Relations
Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that the State Disaster Emergency originally declared on March 7, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and which has been periodically extended since that date, has expired on June 24th, 2021 and will not be renewed. At this point, it is Fidelis Care’s intention to continue to ease into business as usual by applying the same Utilization Management requirements on COVID-19 related admissions as we would any other inpatient stay, including services & admissions impacted by the previously issued COVID-related waivers and directives issued under Executive Order (EO) 202 that are tied to the State Disaster Emergency.
Although the lifting of the State of Emergency in New York allows health plans to apply such changes immediately, Fidelis Care plans to provide a grace period through July 23, 2021.
Please note: several key requirements and flexibilities enacted during the emergency are tied to the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE), and will remain in place despite the termination of the emergency in New York State. These include the requirement for plans to maintain continuous Medicaid coverage for members and refrain from disenrolling members (except in cases where the member has died or no longer resides in New York State), as well as the requirement for plans to cover all services and treatments (including vaccines) related to COVID-19 without cost-sharing.