29.12.2016 Views

ECONOMIC REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

2hzAyD3

2hzAyD3

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

Figure 4-6<br />

Health Insurance Coverage Status by Age, 2008<br />

Percent of Population<br />

100<br />

80<br />

Uninsured<br />

Individual Market<br />

60<br />

Public<br />

40<br />

Employment-Based<br />

20<br />

0<br />

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90<br />

Age<br />

Note: Individuals were categorized into coverage groupings using the procedure described in<br />

the note to Figure 4-3.<br />

Source: American Community Survey; CEA calculations.<br />

Comprehensive Coverage Expansions<br />

Starting in 2014, the ACA implemented broad-based coverage expansions<br />

designed to ensure that all Americans could access affordable, highquality<br />

health insurance coverage. These expansions consisted of two main<br />

pieces: an expansion of eligibility for Medicaid coverage and comprehensive<br />

reforms to the individual health insurance market. Each of these reforms is<br />

described in greater detail below.<br />

To provide affordable coverage options for the lowest-income<br />

Americans, the ACA provided states with generous financial assistance to<br />

expand Medicaid coverage to all non-elderly people with incomes below 138<br />

percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), around $16,200 for an individual<br />

and $33,500 for a family of four in 2016.8 As specified in the ACA, the<br />

Federal Government has funded 100 percent of the cost for newly eligible<br />

individuals to date, and this share gradually phases down to 90 percent in<br />

2020 and subsequent years. This generous matching rate makes expanding<br />

Medicaid a very attractive proposition for states, particularly since research<br />

has generally concluded that states that expand Medicaid realize significant<br />

8 The base income eligibility threshold is 133 percent of the FPL. However, Medicaid program<br />

rules provide for an additional “income disregard” of 5 percent of income, which brings the<br />

effective eligibility threshold to 138 percent of the FPL. The dollar amounts reported in the text<br />

reflect the 2015 version of the FPL because those are the amounts used to determine eligibility<br />

for coverage during 2016.<br />

210 | Chapter 4

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!