Much has been written on the benefits of expanding Medicaid eligibility to adults with incomes below 138 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Today, as the country struggles to respond to and recover from the devastating fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the case for Medicaid expansion has never been stronger. The public health crisis has focused a spotlight on both the benefits of stable health coverage and the gaps in the nation’s system of coverage and care.

In “Finishing the Job of Medicaid Expansion,” a new expert perspective published for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s State Health and Value Strategies program, Manatt Health partner Deborah Bachrach, manager Kaylee O’Connor and senior managing director Patricia M. Boozang discuss the impact of potential Medicaid expansion in the 12 states that have not yet expanded.

Were these remaining states to expand, an estimated 4.4 million people (if not more due to the COVID-19-driven economic recession), nearly 60 percent of whom are people of color, would become eligible for Medicaid. The experience of the 36 states that expanded Medicaid between 2014 and 2020 makes clear the health and economic benefits of expansion for newly insured individuals, their families, their communities and the states in which they reside.

To access the full expert perspective, click here.