Large cities in Medicaid expansion states to see 60% drop in uninsured rate, study finds

A new study projects that large U.S. cities in states that expanded Medicaid will see a much larger decrease in uninsured rates than those in states that did not expand the program under the ACA (Study: “Urban uninsured would drop 60 percent with Medicaid expansion” The Hill, June 19, 2014).

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation study examined the uninsured rates for 14 major cities (Columbus was the only Ohio city) and estimated that the percentage of uninsured would drop by an average of 57 percent in 2016 if states that have adopted the Medicaid expansion. The other cities included in the study that are in Medicaid expansion states were Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Seattle.

By contrast, cities in states that have not expanded the Medicaid program are expected to see a 30 percent drop, on average, in their uninsured rate. Those cities include Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Indianapolis, Memphis, Miami and Philadelphia.

The study found that the number of uninsured Columbus residents could drop by 83,000 people by 2016 — from 137,000 to 54,000. This represents a 60.6 percent decrease in the city’s uninsured population. 

“For several years health reform will be the driving force behind a large drop in the number of uninsured people living in major cities,” said John Lumpkin, MD, senior vice president at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “The biggest decline is happening in places like Columbus, because Ohio lawmakers chose to expand the Medicaid program throughout the state.”