PA families will get chance to rejoin Medicaid

(Harrisburg) -- More than 100,000 Pennsylvania households who were kicked off the Medicaid rolls amid a state effort to purge the program of waste will get a chance to have their benefits reinstated.

Advocates for children and the poor say they've reached a settlement of claims that eligible families were improperly removed from the health insurance program.

Under terms of the agreement, households will be able to submit a one-page form requesting that their medical benefits be reinstated. Eligible families will be able to get reimbursed for any out-of-pocket medical expenses they incurred.

The dispute began as the Department of Public Welfare tackled a backlog of 385,000 cases that state officials said were overdue for eligibility reviews.