The Medicaid rolls now stand at 50-million-plus, according to an analysis by USA Today. And another 16 million people are expected to enroll in the federal-state program due to health-care overhaul legislation, which requires states to cover adults with gross incomes of up to 138% of the poverty level.
So what will these new enrollees look like?
According to a new analysis by the Urban Institute, conducted for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the currently uninsured and privately insured adults in that population are, on average, healthier than the adults now enrolled in the program. That suggests that people who enroll in Medicaid under health-care overhaul aren’t likely to be as expensive as current enrollees, the researchers write.
This is an old idea, come round again. Likely true.