It's Now up to The States to Expand Healthcare

During the Israelites’ journey to Israel, Miriam is afflicted with leprosy and was separated from the rest of the community. The Israelites recognized a responsibility to care for her, and the Torah explains that, “the people did not journey on until Miriam was brought in [to the camp] again (Numbers 12:15).” The Israelites recognized that each member of the community had to walk toward the Promised Land together. No one would be left behind. Those who were sick would be taken care of until they were healthy and whole again.  

When it comes to affordable healthcare, far too many Americans are still being left behind. Since 2010, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) has helped 20 million previously uninsured Americans gain access to healthcare services. Many of these Americans now have access to healthcare exchanges to purchase affordable care even if they are not employed by a large company, and other young people have been able to stay on their parent’s insurance until age 26. Millions more receive healthcare through an expansion in state Medicaid programs. Unfortunately, 19 states have not expanded Medicaid, leaving millions unnecessarily uninsured.

An essential provision of the ACA expanded Medicaid to Americans with incomes at or below 138% of the federal poverty line. Under the law, every state would have the opportunity to expand their current Medicaid coverage with the federal government paying 100% of the costs, and then 90% of the costs after 2020. Despite the fact that this expansion costs nothing for states, in the 19 states that have refused to expand coverage, Medicaid is only available to families who earn 44% of the poverty line. That means that families currently below the poverty line, often unable to purchase insurance, have no access to healthcare because of these states’ decisions. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, this “coverage gap” currently includes about three million uninsured Americans. And there is a racial disparity in this coverage gap. 56% of those not able to access Medicaid includes Americans of color.

Insuring more Americans will not only help those in need of healthcare, but will also provide a more equitable system of care. When a patient comes to a hospital seeking emergency care but does not have enough money to afford it, the hospital will treat the patient anyway, often never getting paid for the services.  In 2014, hospitals provided nearly $50 billion in uncompensated care for uninsured patients. This number has continued to drop as more Americans receive health insurance, but insuring more Americans means that cities and states will not be left funding emergency care. So providing insurance creates a more equitable community, while also giving families the peace of mind that they will have access to quality healthcare when they get sick. Surely this should be the expectation of families in every state.

The Jewish tradition urges communities to provide care for all of those in need. The Talmud asserts, “Whoever is in pain, lead him to the physician,” (Bava Kamma 46b).” 19 states have the opportunity to provide healthcare to three million Americans. We should continue to urge them to care for their citizens in need.

Visit the RAC’s healthcare page for the latest updates on this issue and to learn how you can get involved.