Health insurance coverage is as important as ever

With so much discussion about the value of Medicaid and the merits and demerits of expanding its coverage, a new study demonstrates what happens when previously uninsured people get Medicaid coverage: They experience better health, consistently and with less financial strain.

This month the National Bureau of Economic Research published a study looking at Oregon residents who were on Medicaid. Some of the key findings show that Medicaid coverage:

• Increases the likelihood of using outpatient care by 35 percent.
• Increases the use of recommended preventive care such as mammograms by 60 percent.
• Increases the probability that individuals report having a regular office or clinic for their primary care by 70 percent.
• Decreases the probability of having to borrow money or skip paying other bills to pay for health care by 40 percent.
• Increases the probability that people report themselves in good to excellent health (compared with fair or poor health) by 25 percent.

This study, which was partially funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), is the first to evaluate the impact of insuring the uninsured in the U.S. using a randomized controlled trial. In 2008, Oregon held a lottery to accept additional low-income, uninsured residents into its Medicaid program. About 90,000 people applied for the 10,000 available openings in the program. Researchers then collected data on the lottery participants from a variety of sources and compared outcomes between those selected by the lottery and those who went unselected in order to determine the impact of Medicaid. It's an incredibly robust resource and RWJF is pleased to support this kind of non-partisan, rigorous research.

The study confirms much of what we know about health insurance coverage: Insured Americans live healthier lives because they are able to access the care they need when they need it. Not having coverage forces people to forgo treatment, risk their health and incur medical debt. Delaying needed care hurts individuals, puts unnecessary burdens on our health care system and increases costs for everyone.

As this study shows, Medicaid is a lifeline for providing access to needed primary and preventive care, so that small health problems do not become expensive, hard-to-treat medical emergencies. Clearly, states are struggling with shrinking budgets and difficult decisions, and Medicaid is one of the largest portions of a state's budget. The results of this study, however, show that providing health coverage pays tremendous dividends in health and financial security for our nation's most vulnerable individuals.

The results of this study are particularly timely because the Affordable Care Act (ACA) expands Medicaid to more low-income residents. About 16 million additional people will receive coverage through Medicaid under the ACA. As Washington debates the cost-value of Medicaid, it is important to remember the big picture that this study drives home: Ensuring that people have stable, affordable health care coverage means they also have access to needed care, avoid financial devastation and feel better – all demonstrably important, nonpartisan goals.