Since the Supreme Court ruled that states won鈥檛 be required under the health law to expand Medicaid, Washington has been buzzing with estimates about the numbers of poor people who could be left uninsured. But the numbers so far have been inflated, because they included both those who would become eligible for the first time and those who already聽are eligible for Medicaid 鈥� and will still qualify 鈥� even if their state passes on the Medicaid expansion.
Today, the Urban Institute released 聽with state breakdowns that looks聽only at those likely to be left uninsured if a state chooses not to expand Medicaid.聽According to the institute, 11.5 million of 15.1 million adults who are potentially eligible for Medicaid under the health law wouldn鈥檛 qualify either for that coverage or for federal subsidies to purchase聽private insurance聽through state online insurance marketplaces without an expansion.
Florida鈥檚 Republican Gov. Rick Scott said in a news release July 1 that his state won鈥檛 expand its Medicaid program, and governors or state officials in at least seven other Republican-led states, including Texas, Louisiana and Wisconsin, have said they likely won鈥檛.