JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Several thousand Missourians who previously were not eligible for Medicaid are expected to seek the health care coverage, now that voter-approved expansion of the program has started.
Friday marked the day the health care program began processing applications. Voters approved Medicaid expansion in August 2020. The constitutional amendment passed with 53% of the vote. However, Governor Mike Parson initially refused to enact it because he says the state didn’t have it in the budget. The courts then ruled the program must be implemented--tossing it back to Jefferson City lawmakers to figure out how to pay for it.
Previously, Missouri’s health care program did not cover most adults without children, and its income eligibility threshold for parents was one of the lowest in the nation, at about one-fifth of the poverty level—$3,000 dollars a year for an individual. With Medicaid’s expansion, now people age 19-65 making less than $17,774 annually as an individual or less than $37,570 for a family of four qualifies. The expansion is expected to add Medicaid eligibility for up to 275,000 low-income Missourians.
“It’s going to make a huge difference for single adults and parents so that they can maintain the care that they should get to take care of their families and not have to worry about that or possibly going bankrupt from getting sick,” said Geoff Oliver with Legal Services of Eastern Missouri. “So, yeah, it's a huge deal.”
The organization is behind outreach efforts to both inform people of their eligibility and help them fill out the application—which they say is simple, but possibly overwhelming for some.
“We knew it was important to get the word out and also be available to assist people with the process,” said Earlene Bolton.
“I've been a health challenge for a very long time. I get cancer off and on since I was five years old. Six different forms of cancer,” she said. Intense treatments plus changing life circumstances left Reynolds uninsured, and she’s concerned about a lump in her abdomen she can’t get checked out until she’s covered.
“I knew when I walked into that ER, I wasn't going to be able to pay for it, but I only went when I knew that I couldn't handle the pain anymore, or I needed help breathing, or I needed help with the pain in my stomach,” she said. “I had to do something.”
Oliver points out that taxpayers ultimately wind up footing the bill when people who are uninsured make trips to the ER they can’t afford, especially people who rely on daily medicine for their conditions.
“If they're just provided their medications on a day to day basis, they're not going to go to the emergency room, and it really ends up being a big savings to the whole community,” he said. “Their health is better, their family's health is better and better for us as far as our pocketbook issues to taxpayers.
Now Reynolds says she’ll be watching for notification that she’s been accepted into the program, so she can schedule the doctor appointment she desperately needs.
“I think for the first time again, I feel hope.”
It wasn't immediately clear how many people have applied for Medicaid under the expansion. An email message left Friday with a spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Social Services wasn't immediately returned.
If you need assistance applying for Medicaid Coverage, contact Legal Services of Eastern Missouri.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.