Approximately 600,400 military veterans could go without healthcare coverage in 2017 if non-expansion states continue to reject Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, according to research from the Urban Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
About 39 percent of the 327,000 uninsured veterans in non-expansion states currently qualify for Medicaid or subsidized health plans from HealthCare.gov. This proportion could rise to 77 percent if those states expanded income eligibility for Medicaid, according to the report.
"There is a tendency to think that all veterans get health coverage through the VA, which is far from the case," reads a statement from Kathy Hempstead, senior adviser to the vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, according to the report. "While the coverage situation for vets has improved a great deal, hundreds of thousands of veterans remain uninsured, many of whom would be eligible if their states expanded Medicaid."
Nearly 70 percent of the 277,000 uninsured veterans in expansion states (194,000 veterans) are currently eligible for Medicaid or premium subsidies, according to the report.
"There is room to further reduce coverage gaps for veterans and their family members under the ACA by increasing take-up among those eligible for Medicaid or marketplace subsidies, increasing enrollment in VA care, and expanding Medicaid in additional states," the report concluded.