A Deloitte-Run System Denied Medicaid Benefits for Michigan’s Disabled. Now Trump’s Law Piles On. - KFF Health News
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A Deloitte-Run System Denied Medicaid Benefits for Michigan’s Disabled. Now Trump’s Law Piles On.
After Marie Noon was wrongly denied Medicaid coverage by Michigan’s benefits system, she paid hundreds out-of-pocket for medications she takes each day to manage her rare disease. (Kate Wells/KFF Health News)
A Deloitte-Run System Denied Medicaid Benefits for Michigan’s Disabled. Now Trump’s Law Piles On.
By Rachana Pradhan, Samantha Liss, and Kate Wells
July 21, 2026
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Marie Noon takes eight medications a day. One keeps her heart rate from spiking to avoid a stroke. One prevents debilitating headaches. Another ensures she doesn’t retain excess fluid.
This story also ran on NPR. It can be republished for free.
More than a decade ago, Noon said, she was diagnosed with adult-onset Still’s disease, a rare type of inflammatory arthritis that can cause rashes, debilitating pain, and fevers. The disease upended her life.
She had been living a typical suburban life in Michigan, shuttling her two kids to activities like cheerleading, choir practice, and track. She was active in the PTA. She managed a bank.
She went from that to crawling to the bathroom because she was in so much pain, “just crying all day long” from being so sick.
Noon, who is disabled, said she couldn’t work for eight years — a time marked by hospital stays that stretched for weeks.
“I honestly thought I was going to die,” Noon said.
So it was a shock when Michigan denied her application for Medicaid benefits last year after she lost private insurance. Worse yet, it came down to an IT error, according to an attorney who helped Noon overturn the denial.
“I can’t afford my medical care. I have to have insurance,” said Noon, who has returned to working.
Deloitte, a multibillion-dollar global consulting firm, has operated Michigan’s Medicaid eligibility system under contracts worth roughly $768 million since 2006, according to contracts reviewed by KFF Health News. Nationwide, Deloitte dominates this important slice of government business: At least 25 states have awarded the company contracts to build or run computer systems that control access to safety net benefits such as Medicaid.
Michigan’s system has incorrectly directed people with disabilities into skimpier benefits that cover limited care or has denied coverage completely, a KFF Health News investigation found. Similar problems were at the center of a class-action suit in Tennessee, court documents show, and have occurred in Texas, according to interviews and state records.
The KFF Health News investigations are based on statements from state officials, allegations and declarations in court documents, emails obtained through public records requests, state government information provided to Medicaid enrollees and applicants, and interviews with attorneys and patients or their caregivers.
In an emailed statement, Deloitte spokesperson Karen Walsh said it found “no system anomalies causing routine denials of Medicaid for people with disabilities.”
“There are many reasons why someone may no longer be eligible for a benefit they once received or believe they deserve,” Walsh said. “All of the eligibility systems we support are owned by the states and built to their unique specifications. We will continue to work at the direction of our state clients.”
Lynn Sutfin, a spokesperson for Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services, said it "is not aware of any widespread or systemic issues” within Bridges, Michigan’s eligibility system for Medicaid, SNAP, and other benefits, “related to disability‑based eligibility pathways."
Since 2006, Deloitte’s contracts with the state have said the company is responsible for development, implementation, maintenance, operations, and enhancements to the Michigan system.
Computer system problems...