The share of individuals who will gain insurance coverage under the federal healthcare reform law will vary sharply from state to state, according to a report released Monday by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
For instance, in Texas, Kaiser estimates that just 42% of the 6.2 million non-elderly uninsured residents will be eligible for Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program or subsidized private coverage.
By contrast, in California Kaiser estimates that 63% of the state's 7 million non-elderly uninsured residents will qualify for publicly subsidized coverage under one of those programs. Only 17% of the currently uninsured who aren't barred from receiving benefits because of immigration status will be excluded from some form of subsidized coverage.
The difference is largely because Texas' Republican elected leaders have refused to implement the Medicaid expansion allowed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to bring adults earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level into the program. California's Democratic leaders have embraced the expansion, most of which will be paid for by the federal government.
“The ACA will help millions of currently uninsured Texans gain health coverage, but many who could have obtained financial assistance through the Medicaid expansion will remain outside its reach,” the Kaiser report concludes.
So far, roughly half the states have opted not to move forward with the Medicaid expansion. In those states, most adults without children who have incomes under the federal poverty level do not qualify for Medicaid.
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