Protect Medicaid Funding: Older Adults and Individuals with Disabilities, Issue 3

Executive Summary

This third issue in NHeLP’s Protect Medicaid Funding series centers on policies to cut or cap Medicaid funding, and how such austerity actions would adversely impact the lives of older adults and individuals with disabilities. For example with capped federal funding, states facing budget shortfalls “would have strong incentives to shift costs to enrollees. States would likely add premiums, copayments, and other costs that would reduce access to necessary services and supports.” This paper was updated in February 2017 to include personal stories from families in California and Colorado, whose lives have been improved by Medicaid coverage.