Oklahomans Vote to Expand Medicaid On Tuesday, Oklahomans voted in favor of an amendment to their state constitution to fully expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act to all adults under age 65 with incomes up to 138% FPL. Under the amendment, the state is required to start providing coverage to the expansion population no later than July 1, 2021. It’s estimated that at least 200,000 people will be newly eligible for Medicaid, not accounting for everyone who may become eligible due to COVID-19 related income and job loss. The amendment also prevents the state from implementing harmful eligibility and coverage restrictions, such as those included in the state’s 1115 waiver application pending with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Last week, Justice in Aging submitted comments asking CMS to reject the waiver, which requests permission to impose work reporting requirements and premiums, eliminate retroactive coverage, implement a per capita cap on federal funding, and make other harmful cuts to coverage for the expansion population and other adults who do not qualify for Medicaid on the basis of age or disability. |
