How Medicaid Expansion Impacts Neediest Americans

As of last night, 37 states have expanded Medicaid, while 14 states have not adopted any Medicaid expansion. Both Nebraska, Idaho and Utah expanded Medicaid through ballot measures yesterday.

Medicaid is financed by federal, state and local funds to provide healthcare for low-income Americans. The Affordable Care Act sought to make Medicaid coverage free for all legal residents with incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty line eligible for free Medicaid. The Supreme Court struck this measure down and left it up to the states to decide whether they would expand the program or not.

According to a newly released study by the Government Accountability Office and the National Center for Health Statistics, low-income people in states that have not expanded Medicaid access pass up routine medical procedures at higher rates than low-income people in states that have expanded Medicaid.

Federal 2016 survey data indicates that low-income Americans in states that have not expanded Medicaid pass up routine dental care at twice the rate of those in areas with expanded Medicaid. When it comes to seeking out specialized care 22 percent of low-income individuals in states that have not expanded Medicaid do not seek out specialized medical care, while only 15 percent of low-income individuals pass over this medical attention in states with expanded Medicaid.