Medicaid: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|United States social health care program for families and individuals with limited resources until 2018}}

In the [[United States]], '''Medicaid''' iswas a government program that providesprovided [[health insurance]] for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program iswas partially funded and primarily managed by [[U.S. state|state]] governments, which also havehad wide latitude in determining eligibility and benefits, but the federal government setsset baseline standards for state Medicaid programs and providesprovided a significant portion of their funding.

Medicaid was established in 1965 and was significantly expanded by the [[Affordable Care Act]] (ACA), which was passed in 2010. In most states, anyone with income up to 138% of the federal [[Poverty line in the United States#Measures of poverty|poverty line]] qualifiesqualified for Medicaid coverage under the provisions of the ACA.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program, & Basic Health Program Eligibility Levels |url=https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/national-medicaid-chip-program-information/medicaid-childrens-health-insurance-program-basic-health-program-eligibility-levels/index.html |access-date=2021-02-14 |publisher=Medicaid}}</ref> A 2012 [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] decision established that states may continue to use pre-ACA Medicaid eligibility standards and receive previously established levels of federal Medicaid funding; in states that make that choice, income limits may be significantly lower, and able-bodied adults may not be eligible for Medicaid at all.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=https://www.medicaid.gov/affordable-care-act/eligibility/index.html|title=Eligibility |publisher=Medicaid |language=en-us|access-date=2018-04-12}}</ref>

Medicaid iswas the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with low income in the United States, providing free health insurance to 85 million low-income and disabled people asuntil of 20222018;{{ r | Medicaid_gov_2022-12_data }} in 2019, the program paid for half of all U.S. births.<ref name="Franco"/> As of 2017, the total annual cost of Medicaid was just over $600 billion, of which the federal government contributed $375 billion and states an additional $230 billion.<ref name="Franco" /> States are not required to participate in the program, although all have since 1982. In general, Medicaid recipients musthad to be [[Citizenship in the United States|U.S. citizens]] or qualified non-citizens, and may includeincluded low-income adults, their children, and people with certain [[Disability|disabilities]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Coverage for lawfully present immigrants |url=https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/lawfully-present-immigrants/ |publisher=Healthcare.gov |access-date=9 January 2019}}</ref> {{As of|2022}} 45% of those receiving Medicaid or [[Children's Health Insurance Program|CHIP]] were children.<ref name=Medicaid_gov_2022-12_data > {{ cite web | url=https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/program-information/medicaid-and-chip-enrollment-data/report-highlights/index.html | title=December 2022 Medicaid & CHIP Enrollment Data Highlights | last= | first= | date= | access-date=2023-04-10 | archive-url= | archive-date= | url-status=live | pages= | quote=92,340,585 individuals were enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP in the 50 states and the District of Columbia that reported enrollment data for December 2022. 85,280,085 individuals were enrolled in Medicaid. 7,060,500 individuals were enrolled in CHIP. 41,670,091 individuals were enrolled in CHIP or were children enrolled in the Medicaid program in the 49 states and the District of Columbia that reported child enrollment data for December 2022 representing 46.3% of total Medicaid and CHIP program enrollment. }} </ref>

Medicaid coverscovered healthcare costs for people with low incomes, while [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] iswas a universal program providing health coverage for the elderly. Medicaid offersoffered elder care benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and personal care services. There arewere also dual health plans for people who havehad both Medicaid and Medicare.<ref>{{cite web |title=Medicare & Medicaid |url=https://www.hhs.gov/answers/medicare-and-medicaid/index.html |publisher=HHS.gov U.S. Department of Health & Human Services |access-date=17 February 2021}}</ref> Along with Medicare, [[Tricare]], and [[Veterans Health Administration#Non-Medical Programs|ChampVA]], Medicaid is one of the four government-sponsored [[medical insurance]] programs in the United States. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in [[Baltimore]], [[Maryland]] provides federal oversight.<ref name="official">{{cite web|title=Medicaid|url=https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/index.html|access-date=24 February 2023 |department=www.medicaid.gov|publisher=U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in Baltimore}}</ref>

Research showsshowed that existence of the Medicaid program improvesimproved health outcomes, health insurance coverage, access to health care, and recipients' financial security and provides economic benefits to states and health providers.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=http://econofact.org/evidence-on-the-value-of-medicaid|title=Evidence on the Value of Medicaid |last1=Gottlieb|first1=Joshua D. |last2=Shepard|first2=Mark | name-list-style = vanc |date=2017-07-02|work=Econofact|access-date=2017-07-05 }}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web|url=https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/the-effects-of-medicaid-expansion-under-the-aca-updated-findings-from-a-literature-review-august-2019/|title=The Effects of Medicaid Expansion under the ACA: Updated Findings from a Literature Review|last1=Antonisse|first1=Larisa|first2=Madeline|last2=Guth|date=2019-08-15|website=The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The evidence on Medicaid expansion|publisher=American Medical Association|url=https://www.ama-assn.org/system/files/2020-10/research-summary-benefits-of-medicaid-expansion.pdf}}</ref><ref name=":8"/>