Connecticut first state to expand Medicaid coverage to new groups
Connecticut is the first state to add low-income adults to its Medicaid program under the new Affordable Care Act, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
"This is tremendous news for the state of Connecticut," said Governor M. Jodi Rell. "For many years, Connecticut has provided state assistance to ensure that our most vulnerable single adults have access to healthcare. Now with this federal help, we will be able to provide increased medical benefits for them through Medicaid while relieving the burden on state taxpayers."
The Affordable Care Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, permits states to receive federal funding for providing Medicaid coverage to adults with incomes up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL), or $14,400 for an individual in 2010. Prior to passage of healthcare reform, states could only cover childless adults by applying for a waiver of Medicaid rules. These waivers were temporary and states had to meet strict criteria for approval and renewal.
The Affordable Care Act requires states to cover all low-income individuals in Medicaid starting in 2014, but also allows states to get federal funding to enroll them right away.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved Connecticut's state plan amendment on June 21, making it the first to implement the new option. State officials estimate that approximately 45,000 adults will become eligible for Medicaid under this health reform expansion.
"Connecticut's action will allow its low-income, uninsured residents to be among the first Americans to realize the full benefits of the Affordable Care Act," said Marilyn Tavenner, acting administrator of the CMS. "We hope other states will follow Connecticut's example and not wait four years to provide health benefits to those who desperately need them."
Prior to passage of the new healthcare law, many uninsured adults in Connecticut received coverage through a state-funded program known as State-Administered General Assistance (SAGA). Connecticut will enroll individuals whose annual income is up to 56 percent of the FPL or $6,650 per year for an individual in 2010.
Federal funding for this will be made available to the state retroactive to April 1, when the federal funding first became available. The state will receive the regular federal Medicaid matching rate for this new coverage, which Connecticut officials estimate will save the state at least $53 million by July 2011.
Under provisions of the Affordable Care Act, beginning Jan. 1, 2014, the federal government will pay all of the costs related to this new eligibility group for three years. Beginning in 2017, the federal matching rate will decline gradually until it reaches 90 percent of allowable costs where it will remain indefinitely.
CMS is working with several other states that are considering similar coverage improvements under the new law.
