Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study: ACA's Expanded Medicaid Safety Net Dramatically Improving Access To Care
Los Angeles Times: Obamacare Is Helping More Poor Patients Get To The Doctor Even As Political Battles Continue
Even as the Affordable Care Act remains a political flash point, new research shows it is dramatically improving poor patients’ access to medical care in states that have used the law to expand their Medicaid safety net. After just two years of expanded coverage, patients in expansion states are going to the doctor more frequently and having less trouble paying for it. At the same time, the experience in those states suggests better access will ultimately improve patients’ health, as patients get more regular checkups and seek care for chronic illnesses such diabetes and heart disease. (Levey, 8/8)
The Hill: Study: ObamaCare's Medicaid Expansion Increases Access To Care
A new study finds that ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion led to gains in access to healthcare in two Southern states. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, finds that patients fared better in Kentucky and Arkansas — two states that accepted the expansion of Medicaid — compared to Texas, which has rejected it. (Sullivan, 8/8)
The Fiscal Times: Medicaid Expansion Is Working For Low-Income Adults, But Can It Last?
There is little doubt that the expanded Medicaid program for low-income adults under the Affordable Care Act is proving to be far more costly than originally billed by the administration. The latest Medicaid actuarial report issued late last month pegged the per enrollee cost for adults at $6,366 in 2015, up 49 percent from previous estimates. Over the coming decade, Medicaid outlays through this program will be nearly $250 billion higher than previous actuarial projections. That trend could pose serious financial challenges for the federal government, which is currently footing the cost, and the more than 30 states that have opted into the program so far that eventually must pick up ten percent or more of the overall cost of the expanded health insurance. (Pianin, 8/8)
Georgia Health News: Medicaid Expansion Would Be Windfall For State, Report Says
For each dollar that Georgia would have to spend on Medicaid expansion, it would gain $8.68 to $9.42 in federal spending, a new study said Monday. The report from the Urban Institute analyzes the potential costs and benefits for the 19 states (including Georgia) that have not expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. If all those states expanded Medicaid this year, they could see a collective net increase in federal funding from years 2017 to 2026 of up to $462 billion, versus a cost of $56 billion, the study said. (Miller, 8/8)
