23k newly eligible sign up for Medicaid in first month of expansion

New state data released yesterday indicates that 23,156 newly eligible Ohioans enrolled in Medicaid in January, the first month in which eligibility expansion went into effect(Source: “9 percent of Ohio’s newly eligible enroll in Medicaid,” Columbus Dispatch, Feb. 13, 2014).

The total was included in the Ohio Department of Medicaid's monthly report on enrollment, and represents about 9 percent of the 275,000 that officials have estimated would enroll in the program by July 2015  as a result of expansion.

Under the expansion of Medicaid, pushed in the state by Gov. John Kasich, health insurance is now available to those with incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level. That’s income of a little less than $16,000 a year for an individual. Most of those gaining coverage are adults ages 18 to 64 without dependent children; Ohio already covered children, parents and the elderly.

Ohioans who believe they qualify for Medicaid can apply through the state website, benefits.ohio.gov, or visit their county Department of Job and Family Services. Help also is available through the Ohio Benefit Bank at www.ohiobenefits.org.