Administrator Seema Verma, the Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, has taken to social media to express that by President of United States  declaring the COVID19 situation a national emergency, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is able to grant state & territorial Medicaid agencies a wider range of flexibilities, including Section 1135 waiver requests that will remove administrative burdens and expand access to needed services.

Florida became the 1st state to submit an 1135 waiver request in response to the COVID19 national emergency, & to ensure our state partners have the tools needed to combat COVID-19, & CMS acted w/in days to approve a variety of Medicaid flexibilities, she said.