Congress has met for the first time this week since the US Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade case, and health advocates are urging lawmakers to spend time closing the insurance coverage gap.
A coalition of groups, including the Florida Policy Institute, Florida Voices for Health, and MomsRising, hosted a webinar on Tuesday to discuss this issue. Reproductive Healthcare is a state that has not expanded Medicaid.
About 425,000 Florida citizens live in the coverage gap. This means you have too much income to qualify for the state Medicaid program, but not enough to get a premium tax credit on the Affordable CareAct Marketplace.
Many of these residents are of color, stating Congressman Angie Nixon. [D-Jacksonville] As pointed out, you are more likely to have complications during pregnancy.
“Loss of access to legal abortion is likely to mean increased maternal and mortality rates, pushing up health inequalities, as non-expanding countries like Florida most limit legal abortion. It’s working, “said Nixon.
According to advocates, it is important for people to have access to health care, so those who do not want children can effectively prevent pregnancy and those who do so can give birth safely.
Pregnant people can ride the Florida Medicaid more easily than other low-income adults. The state is one of several states nationwide that has decided to extend postpartum coverage for one year instead of 60 days this year.
However, postpartum Medicaid coverage was inadequate, argued Holly Bullard, Chief Strategy and Development Officer at the Florida Institute for Policy Research.
“People in the coverage gap often miss prejudice and prenatal care because Medicaid’s pregnancy coverage doesn’t start until they know they’re pregnant and apply for Medicaid,” she explained. .. “Filling Medicaid’s coverage gap with this upcoming settlement package will give women access to comprehensive coverage at critical moments.”
Thousands of others, including Allison Homes, who live in Seminole County, can benefit from bridging the coverage gap. She is a full-time caregiver for her son, who has a disability and has been struggling to access health care for years.
Holmes said he wanted Florida to expand Medicaid like the other 38 states in the country, but leaders repeatedly refused.
“In Florida, you’re alone, and if there was a way out of it, I couldn’t find it,” she said before urging Congress to act.
Policy experts say one of the possible solutions is to expand the eligibility of ACA subsidies for residents living in non-expanded states.
It is unclear whether Congress will include policy changes in its next attempt at spending packages. This happens after the Buildback Better Act, which was passed by the House of Representatives last year but died in the Senate.
