The Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion in Maryland and other states has the potential of helping millions of people receive affordable health care coverage. However, the ACA Medicaid expansion is not compulsory and each state has the right to accept or opt out of it. Lawmakers in Maryland had to consider the Obamacare Medicaid expansion details when the ACA proposed the government health care insurance development. The biggest change the expansion offers is simpler and more inclusive eligibility requirements for Medicaid. Due to the new guidelines, the ACA Medicaid expansion cost to states budgets was amongst the highest considerations legistativors deliberated. With an MD Affordable Care Act Medicaid eligibility inflation, the state would need to handle the increase of needed funds. To find out what is the expansion of Medicaid and how implementation of the new guidelines can affect Maryland residents, continue reading the outlined topics below.

Learn About the ACA Medicaid Expansion in Maryland

What is the Obamacare Medicaid expansion and did Maryland implement it? In states that choose to accept the ACA Medicaid expansion, qualifications for enrollment into the health care insurance program can be contingent on earnings alone. Older requirements for Medicaid enrollment looked at other factors, such as age and health status, in addition to income levels. ACA eligibility would allow more low-income people to qualify for assistance when applying to the Medicaid program.

Washington D.C. and 31 states including Maryland chose to institute the Affordable Care Act expansion of Medicaid. Maryland legislators weighed the benefits and disadvantages of the Maryland ACA expansion plan before making a decision. The expansion program has the possibility of helping many people but it does have some financial drawbacks. While the federal government provides resources to fund the program, the ACA Medicaid expansion cost to states can still be quite large. Some states will have to pay billions of dollars over the course of a decade to keep the program working. However, the MD Affordable Care Act expansion was signed into law as state lawmakers found that the positive aspects of the program are worth the cost.

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What does choosing the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion mean for Maryland?

The MD Obamacare Medicaid expansion details are simple, as the main change involves the enrollment requirements. The Affordable Care Act expansion eligibility requirements will look at income as the sole qualification for enrolling in the program. The Maryland Obamacare Medicaid expansion plan allows those who earn up to a certain percentage of the federal poverty level to receive Medicaid coverage. This mainly helps adults 19 to 64 years of age who may not have been able to get Medicaid benefits before the expansion. The percentage of individuals enrolled in Maryland Medicaid increased from 11.5 percent in 2012 to 19 percent in 2015.

There are additional benefits of the Medicaid program expansion than allowing more adults who do not have dependents to receive Medicaid assistance. Other benefits of the MD Medicaid expansion include a drop in the uninsured rate. In the program’s first four years, the percentage of Maryland residents who did not have health insurance fell from about 10.1 percent to 6.7 percent. Those between 45 and 55 years of age benefited the most from this program. The Affordable Care Act expansion of the Medicaid program has helped decrease the overall uninsured rate by almost 50 percent nationwide.

Will the ACA Medicaid expansion allow me to enroll in Medicaid?

While anyone can submit an Affordable Care Act Medicaid application in Maryland, not everyone who applies for health care insurance will be enrolled. While the ACA Medicaid expansion helps low-income adults without dependents or disabilities, petitioners should still check out the qualification criteria before applying. Applicants in Maryland can still be denied Medicaid enrollment for making too much money or not meeting the other personal eligibility factors. For instance, illegal immigrants will not qualify for benefits even under the new income guidelines set by the ACA Medicaid expansion.

Medicaid has an open enrollment period so interested applicants can apply any time. Maryland Medicaid offers coverage for those who have a disability or those who are elderly, children, pregnant or the parent of a child.

Take note: If you apply for Maryland Medicaid benefits and are not granted enrollment in the program, there are still other steps you can take to get health care coverage. Other programs such as the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) are not a part of the Medicaid program. This means those who cannot qualify for Medicaid may be able to enroll in these other programs.

To learn about Medicaid benefits and health care options, download our complimentary guide today.