Low-income women would be able to access free prenatal care faster under a bill that passed the House Medicaid committee Wednesday.  The same law passed the full Legislature last year, but never went into effect due to a discrepancy between what was written into state law and federal regulations for the program, called Medicaid pregnancy presumptive eligibility. House Medicaid Chair Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, author of the bill, revised last year’s bill to remove the requirement women show proof of income. She is hopeful the policy will garner the same support it did last year when it overwhelmingly passed both chambers.  House Medicaid Committee Chairwoman Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) “CMS (The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) had some issues that they really did not approve of in our law, and after we talked it through we realized that the changes they wanted to make do no harm to the intent of the Legislature, do no harm to the law itself, do not add any costs to the fiscal note of the program,” McGee said during the committee meeting.  Changes include that a pregnant woman will only have to attest to her income – not provide paystubs – and will not have to provide proof of pregnancy.  McGee’s bill also makes changes to the time frame for presumptive Medicaid eligibility. Last year’s legislation said women would only be eligible for 60 days under the policy, with the hopes that by the end of those 60 days her official Medicaid application would be approved. Federal guidelines already have a different timeframe baked in, which state lawmakers have included in this bill.  The federal timeframe, now congruent with McGee’s bill, says a pregnant woman will be covered under presumptive eligibility until Medicaid approves her official application, however long that takes – as long as she submits a Medicaid application before the end of her second month of presumptive eligibility coverage.  “Let’s say a woman comes in for January 1 and is presumed eligible. She has until February 28 to turn her application in,” McGee said, adding that if Medicaid took a month to approve her application, the pregnant woman would continue to be covered through March.  Eligible women will be pregnant and have a household income up to 194% of the federal poverty level, or about $29,000 annually for an individual.  The bill does not introduce an additional eligibility category or expand coverage. Rather, it simply allows pregnant women eligible for Medicaid to get into a doctor’s office earlier. That’s notable in Mississippi, where Medicaid eligibility is among the strictest in the country, and many individuals don’t qualify until they become pregnant.  An expectant mother would need to fall under the following income levels to qualify for presumptive eligibility in 2025: The post Bill to revise law for low-income pregnant women passes first legislative hurdle appeared first on Mississippi Today.