Medicaid Expansion

Abstract

U.S. longevity is placing a demand on long-term care services for the impaired and elderly. Medicaid is the primary insurance program in funding costly long-term care for the aged poor. As a major health reform law, the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Public Law 111-148, gives financial incentive for states to expand Medicaid, transitioning long-term care services from costly facilities toward home and community-based care. Not all states choose to expand their Medicaid long-term care program despite the financial incentive, but instead they continue spending on nursing facility care despite the less costly option of community care. This article explores why some states have been reluctant to expand long-term care into the community. Regression analysis and 50 state-level data is used.