07/15/2020
BLACKS IN GOVERNMENT
Medicaid expansion will be Amendment 2 on Aug. 4 Ballot
• The League of Women Voters supports this measure to expand Medicaid
eligibility to individuals ages 19 to 64 making under $17,000 or couples
earning under $23,000 per year.
• The proposed Constitutional amendment is projected to bring insurance
coverage to more than 215,000 Missourians. More than 90,000 children and
23,000 adults lost their coverage in the past year.
• Residents of the 36 states that expanded Medicaid have seen better health
outcomes. Those states also saw lower mortality rates.
• By not having expanded Medicaid, the state legislature rejected $15 billion
in federal funding ($1.5 billion dollars a year).
• Missouri HealthNet, the state’s Medicaid program, currently covers only
disabled people, pregnant women, children, and some seniors.
• The League believes Missourians should not have to choose between health
care needs and other necessities.
• This proposal creates thousands of new jobs. It is expected to generate
nearly $2 billion dollars a year in economic activity.
• Washington University research found the state won’t pay more. That’s due
to an increased federal match (90% instead of the current 65%) and its share
of $130 million being offset by cost savings.
• Medicaid expansion will support critical health care infrastructure in rural
Missouri. Eight rural hospitals in the state have closed.
• Medicaid expansion will help our hospitals stay open and our families get
the care they need.
League of Women Voters ® of Metro St. Louis