Yesterday, a summit was hosted on health care reform in Mississippi. While a good bit of information was shared, a couple of key points were somewhat overlooked:
- First, health care reform is good for working Mississippians. Nearly 500,000 Mississippians were uninsured before the passage of the bill. Among the uninsured earning 133% of the federal poverty level (around $28,935 for a family of four), the rate of not having insurance is estimated to decrease by 54.9%.
- Second, Mississippi’s share of the cost is minimal. The chart below contrasts the state and federal costs from 2014-2019.
Additional Spending for Medicaid Expansion in MS to 133% of Poverty 2014-2019 (in millions)
- Third, many of the cost estimates discount the current costs of uncompensated care. Uncompensated care can occur through the use of emergency rooms among the uninsured or mental health services.
- Finally, the individual mandate is critical for the success of the program. Having younger and healthier people included in the program keeps costs down – just like it does in private plans.
One point on which we can all agree is that getting implementation of the program right is in the best interests of all Mississippians. To do so, we will need to take a balanced approach to talking, learning and working on health care reform in Mississippi to maximize the opportunity we have before us.
Source: The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured
Author: Ed Sivak, MEPC Director
