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The Good News About Healthcare In Texas For Everyone But Republicans
How far we’ve fallen. But first the good news. Uninsured rates plunge across Texas.
While Texas continues to lead the nation in the number of uninsured residents, the percentage lacking coverage has fallen significantly since the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplace began enrollments a year and a half ago, a study released Thursday shows.
The decline, to 16.9 percent from 24.6 percent, represents a reduction of nearly a third between September 2013 and March 2015, according to findings by the Episcopal Health Foundation and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
“This is a dramatic drop that’s unprecedented in Texas,” said Elena Marks, president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation and a health policy scholar at the Baker Institute. “It shouldn’t surprise me because this is what was supposed to happen. But considering the weak performance of the rollout of Healthcare.gov and the persistent drumbeat against the Affordable Care Act, I am pleasantly surprised.”
The decline, to 16.9 percent from 24.6 percent, represents a reduction of nearly a third between September 2013 and March 2015, according to findings by the Episcopal Health Foundation and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
“This is a dramatic drop that’s unprecedented in Texas,” said Elena Marks, president and CEO of the Episcopal Health Foundation and a health policy scholar at the Baker Institute. “It shouldn’t surprise me because this is what was supposed to happen. But considering the weak performance of the rollout of Healthcare.gov and the persistent drumbeat against the Affordable Care Act, I am pleasantly surprised.”
Certainly that’s good news, but let’s remember it could be better.
Some of the findings in Thursday’s report remain troubling.
As of March, Texans earning the lowest incomes remain almost four times more likely to be to be uninsured than higher-income residents.
This coverage gap has grown since 2013 because, under the Affordable Care Act, households above an established threshold can buy health insurance using subsidies and those below it were supposed to be picked up by an expansion of the Medicaid program, said Vivian Ho, chair in health economics at the Baker Institute and a Rice professor of economics. She co-authored the report.
Texas is one of 21 states whose leaders chose not to expand Medicaid coverage.
“Texas’ decision not to expand Medicaid leaves those at the lowest income levels with few coverage options,” the report said. The study further concluded that unless the state reverses its decision or finds another way to get coverage for the poor, they “are likely to remain uninsured.”
The 31 percent decrease in the rate of the uninsured in Texas is similar to drops in other states that did not expand Medicaid coverage, the report said. But it remains lower than the nation, which as a whole saw a 41 decrease, and “well below the rate of change for states that expanded Medicaid,” the report said. Those states had a 53 percent average reduction in the number of uninsured.
As of March, Texans earning the lowest incomes remain almost four times more likely to be to be uninsured than higher-income residents.
This coverage gap has grown since 2013 because, under the Affordable Care Act, households above an established threshold can buy health insurance using subsidies and those below it were supposed to be picked up by an expansion of the Medicaid program, said Vivian Ho, chair in health economics at the Baker Institute and a Rice professor of economics. She co-authored the report.
Texas is one of 21 states whose leaders chose not to expand Medicaid coverage.
“Texas’ decision not to expand Medicaid leaves those at the lowest income levels with few coverage options,” the report said. The study further concluded that unless the state reverses its decision or finds another way to get coverage for the poor, they “are likely to remain uninsured.”
The 31 percent decrease in the rate of the uninsured in Texas is similar to drops in other states that did not expand Medicaid coverage, the report said. But it remains lower than the nation, which as a whole saw a 41 decrease, and “well below the rate of change for states that expanded Medicaid,” the report said. Those states had a 53 percent average reduction in the number of uninsured.
Read more: http://eyeonwilliamson.org/?p=14646
