Sebelius Urges Governors to Request Enhanced FMAP Extension from CMS - Aug. 24, 2010

On Aug. 16, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius sent a letter to state governors encouraging them to solicit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) by Sept. 24 for additional funding through an increase in the Federal Medical Assistance Program (FMAP). The FMAP increase, originally provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, was set to expire at the end of 2010, but has been extended by H.R. 1586, the Education Jobs and Medicaid Assistance Act, signed into law by President Obama on Aug. 10. Under the extension, states will receive a 3.2 percentage point FMAP increase for the first additional quarter (January - March 2011) and 1.2 percentage points for the second quarter (April – June 2011). However, as Sebelius notes, states must request the FMAP increase from CMS within 45 days of enactment of H.R. 1586 to secure the additional funds. CMS has provided a template letter that states may use for requesting the FMAP increase.