Medicaid Expansion – Louisiana

Posted on July 1, 2016 by admin

• Louisiana, the U.S. incarceration capital, prepares for expanded Medicaid, By Jayne O’Donnell, June 28, 2016, USA Today: “Here in the state that imprisons more of its citizens per capita than any other, the long-awaited July 1 launch of expanded Medicaid coverage will give those leaving prison a chance to at least continue what many describe as spotty treatment for the conditions that plagued them while behind bars. These include Dolfinette Martin, who has been out of prison for four years with no health coverage or medications to control her bipolar disorder, and Maryam Henderson-Uloho, who spent more than 12 years in prison, and who says she and other inmates seldom sought medical treatment because prison officials would write them up for ‘malingering’ when they did…”
• Louisiana Medicaid expansion and the promise of economic security, By Kevin Litten, June 30, 3016, New Orleans Times-Picayune: “There was a dignity in getting up to go to work each day, even if it was a low-wage janitorial job. Marigny resident Katherine White had been brought up with working class values: What you have is what you worked for, and friends and family were there to support you if you fell short.  But because White didn’t have health insurance that would cover regular doctor visits and prescriptions to treat her persistent high blood pressure, she fell into a gap. That same gap has affected thousands of New Orleans area residents, plunging many of them into situations that threaten their ability to earn regular wages to support themselves and their families…”
• A rush to ERs in Louisiana Medicaid expansion? Clinics hope to fill that need, By Kevin Litten, July 1, 3016, New Orleans Times-Picayune: “In most of the 30 states that expanded Medicaid eligibility before Louisiana, emergency rooms often experienced a surge in traffic when tens of thousands of patients were made eligible for the federally subsidized health insurance.  But in New Orleans and the surrounding area, it’s the network of health clinics established in the years after Hurricane Katrina that is expected to absorb many of the new patients. In many ways, the New Orleans area is uniquely positioned to begin treating the estimated 60,000 people who become eligible for Medicaid on Friday (July 1)…”