The expansion would not only increase eligibility, but grow Medicaid-funded services, such as food and housing, to support public health.
“We’ve had discussions at the federal level in the last 90 days that are completely different from where we’ve ever been before,” said New Jersey Medicaid Director Jennifer Langer Jacobs in an interview with NPR.
While $20 billion for Medicaid has already been funded by March’s COVID-19 relief bill — including coverage for new mothers — much of the funds will need renewal down the road.
Although funding going into Medicaid has faced widespread criticism from congressional conservatives, Matt Salo, head of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, told NPR that services such as housing and food impact public health, but funding them would not be currently sustainable.
Similar steps toward housing and food services were made during the Trump presidency, with officials allowing Medicare Advantage plans to offer members nonmedical benefits such as utilities assistance.
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