Excess Deaths Of Medicaid Home And Community-Based Services Recipients During COVID-19

Using health plan data, we calculated excess mortality rates for Medicaid home and community-based services recipients during March-December 2020. For younger recipients, excess mortality was 7.4 times that of other community-dwelling Medicaid beneficiaries and 26.6 times that of the general population. As a proportion of expected mortality, excess mortality rates for older recipients and nursing home residents were comparable.

Automated summary

Using health plan data, excess mortality rates for Medicaid home and community-based services recipients during March-December 2020 were calculated. The study found that younger recipients had a 7.4 times higher excess mortality rate than other community-dwelling Medicaid beneficiaries and a 26.6 times higher rate than the general population. The excess mortality rates for older recipients and nursing home residents were comparable to their expected mortality rates.