Interactive: Comparing State Medicaid Expansions

If Texas lawmakers decide to expand Medicaid, as called for in the federal Affordable Care Act, the spending, savings, enrollment growth and reduction in the number of uninsured residents are poised to be greater in Texas than in most other states. This interactive compares the expansion of Medicaid in each state using data from a report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care think tank.

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Expanding Medicaid in Texas would have the third-highest total cost — behind New York and California — at $478.3 billion from 2013 to 2022. The federal government would pick up the majority of the tab for individuals covered by the expansion. For the first three years, the federal government would pay 100 percent of the costs for expansion enrollees, and then would taper that amount until it reached 90 percent. In Texas, the federal government would pay $305.3 billion, while the state would pay $168.6 billion over this period.

Texas would also see greater benefits from expanding Medicaid than other states. Currently, Texas has the highest rate of uninsured in the nation, as nearly a quarter of Texans do not have health insurance. That rate would be halved, and the number of uninsured Texans would drop by 3.79 million, according to the Kaiser estimates, if Texas expanded Medicaid. The state would also save $1.7 billion on uncompensated care — the costs of treating uninsured patients that ultimately fall to hospitals, taxpayers and the insured — from 2013 to 2022.

Switch through the maps to see how Texas compares with other states in terms of spending, projected Medicaid enrollment growth, savings on uncompensated care costs and reductions in the number of uninsured if the state expands Medicaid. By hovering over the map, you can see detailed scenarios on how federal health care reform and a Medicaid expansion could affect each state. Keep in mind, we've rounded the numbers.

Feedback | Follow @TribData on Twitter | Sources: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles, Kaiser Family Foundation | Built with: Mapbox TileMill

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