As we move halfway through 2014, rapid changes in how health care is being delivered to our lowest income families are taking place across the country. As I noted last week multiple surveys are showing a significant drop in the rate of uninsured adults nationwide, with most of the reduction coming in states that have […]
Today and over the holiday weekend in states that have so far refused the federal money available for expanding Medicaid, news outlets continue to editorialize in favor of expansion. In Pennsylvania, The Scranton Times-Tribune decried the decision by the Governor and legislature to go home without either passing a budget or expanding Medicaid to 300,000 […]
While a majority of states have accepted federal money to expand health coverage to their lowest-income citizens, many states are still declining funding available under the Affordable Care Act. Reports based on recent federal census data from these states show that most people who would finally gain affordable coverage if Medicaid were expanded are working […]
The Oklahoman reported this week that Mercy, the sixth-largest Catholic health care system in the US, would be laying off hundreds of employees. Mercy said the “lack of Medicaid expansion in most of the states we serve” was a primary reason for the layoffs. The other states affected by Mercy’s decision include Arkansas (where Medicaid […]
(Another chapter in the unfolding saga of Round 2 of Medicaid expansion, which I call “from simplicity to complexity”.) A few weeks ago I blogged about Governor Pence’s announcement of his intention to submit a waiver request to expand his Medicaid program using “Healthy Indiana 2.0” as a starting point. The state is currently taking […]
Last week, a group of talented musicians in Oklahoma released a powerful recording about the need to fill the massive gap in health care coverage in their state. (Hat tip: OK Policy Institute.) Noting that over 650,000 state residents – including many professional musicians – do not have health coverage despite working at one or […]
