Next Generation MyCare Ohio in 2026: What Lucas County Families Need to Know

MyCare Ohio has run as a demonstration program since 2014 for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. Ohio is moving that program into a new structure called Next Generation MyCare, with updated managed-care contracts and a tighter alignment between the Medicare and Medicaid sides of your benefits.

For most Lucas County families that means three concrete things. A new welcome packet from your plan. A new ID card, even if your plan name stays the same. A short window where your care manager may change or transfer to a new team.

Your covered services, including personal care, home health aide hours, adult day, and waiver-funded supports, are not being cut as part of the rollout. The plan still has to authorize medically necessary services under your assessed level of care.

If you are 18 or older, live in Lucas County, and have both Medicare and full Medicaid, you are in scope. That includes most people on the MyCare Ohio Plus waiver and many people who were on PASSPORT before they became dual-eligible.

If you only have Medicare, or only have Medicaid, the Next Generation MyCare changes do not apply to you. PASSPORT stays PASSPORT. Straight Medicare stays straight Medicare.

If you are unsure which bucket you are in, look at the card in your wallet. A card that says Buckeye, Molina, CareSource, or Aetna with MyCare on it is the population we are talking about here.

First, make sure the Ohio Department of Medicaid has your current address. Letters that bounce because someone moved from Old West End to Sylvania are the single biggest reason families miss the transition window.

Second, write down the name and phone number of your current care manager. When the transition happens you want to be able to say I had Maria at Buckeye, who is my care manager now.

Third, ask your home-care agency to put your authorization details in writing. Hours per week, start date, end date, and the service codes. That paperwork makes the new plan honor what you already had on day one.

Fourth, do not cancel anything. Some families panic when they see the word change and call to drop a plan, which creates a coverage gap. Wait for the official letter.

Lucas County sits in the northwest region for Next Generation MyCare. You will be assigned to a plan automatically based on your current plan, but you have a window to switch if the auto-assignment does not fit.

If your doctor at ProMedica or Mercy Health is in-network with a specific plan, that is usually the biggest reason to pick one plan over another. Ask the front desk at your primary-care office which Next Generation MyCare plans they take before you make a switch.

Home-care agencies are usually contracted with all of the plans operating in our region. We accept every Next Generation MyCare plan that serves Lucas County, so changing plans does not mean changing caregivers.

We tell people to treat the rollout as paperwork, not a change in care. The Ohio Department of Medicaid built the transition specifically to avoid service gaps for older and disabled adults living at home. If anyone at the new plan tells you they have to re-assess you before authorizing care, push back and ask for a continuity-of-care extension. You are entitled to keep your current services while the new assessment is in process.

If something does not come through cleanly, call the Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program (OSHIIP) for free help. They handle Medicare and dual-eligible questions and they know this rollout inside out.

The Next Generation managed care program is Ohio's unified platform for Medicaid managed care. MyCare Ohio enrollees in Lucas County are being aligned with the new contract structure through 2026.

What stays the same: PASSPORT and Ohio Home Care services continue. Your case manager relationship continues. Your authorized hours continue.

What may change: the plan name on the card, the customer service phone number, the prior-authorization process for some services, and the network of doctors and pharmacies. Always check before you fill a new prescription.