Expanding Medicaid Program for Uninsured Led to Reduced Mortality Rate

Even as governors in the United States are considering whether or not to expand health insurance in their states under the Affordable Care Act, a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reveals that expanding Medicaid program for the uninsured resulted in fewer deaths. The study was conducted by researchers at Harvard School of Public Health who analyzed the effects of expanding Medicaid programs in three states, New York, Maine and Arizona, in 2000. The results were then compared to their neighboring states of Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Nevada and New Mexico which did not implement the expansion.

The researchers found that that the states who expanded Medicaid programs had their mortality rate lower by 19.6 deaths per 100,000 adults compared to the states which did not expand healthcare program.

“The takeaway is that state expansions of Medicaid coverage to adults appear to be effective at improving both access to care and health for low-income Americans”, lead researcher Benjamin Sommers said.

Source-Medindia