Public News Service

By: Trimmel Gomes

Florida isn’t one of the 33 states that expanded its Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act, but if it had, more rural, low-income residents would have health insurance. A new report from Georgetown University shows big coverage gaps in states without expanded Medicaid.

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The report shows the uninsured rate for low-income adults has dropped in the last decade in nearly all states, but the sharpest declines have been in small towns and rural areas where Medicaid programs were expanded. After wavering, Gov. Rick Scott and the Republican-controlled Legislature rejected expansion over cost concerns. Study co-author Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, says there is actually savings through improved coverage rates and a more stable health care system. “Really, it’s a wiser use of taxpayer dollars to provide them with the primary preventive care that comes with having health insurance up front, so they don’t get sicker and wind up in the emergency room,” she points out.

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