State Expansions: Maryland
On November 19, 2007, during the close of the Maryland Legislature’s special session, the State Assembly passed the Working Families and Small Business Coverage Act of 2007 (SB 6), a proposal that significantly expands Medicaid eligibility for adults and helps uninsured small businesses afford coverage. Currently, parents can qualify for Medicaid only if their incomes fall below 46 percent of the federal poverty level ($7,898 annually for a family of three in 2007), and non-disabled childless adults are not eligible for the program, regardless of income.
The Working Families and Small Business Coverage Act expands health coverage to over 100,000 uninsured Marylanders by increasing the Medicaid income eligibility level for both parents and childless adults to 116 percent of poverty ($19,917 for a family of three and $11,844 for an individual in 2007). The act also provides $20 million in grants to uninsured small businesses that start offering coverage. However, in the face of state fiscal constraints, the legislature scaled back the total amount of the subsidies to $15 million for the next fiscal year.
Regardless of the budget challenges, the Medicaid expansion for parents will be implemented on schedule, with enrollment beginning July 1, 2008. The expansion to childless adults will be implemented within four years, contingent upon funding and a federal waiver. Adults who become eligible for Medicaid will receive the same benefit package as other Medicaid recipients in the state.
The Maryland expansion will be funded by surplus from the Maryland Health Insurance Pool (the state’s high-risk pool), a $1 increase in the state tobacco tax, general revenue, and federal matching funds.
Maryland Expansion Resources
Maryland in the News
- Ad Campaign Targets Uninsured Residents (Baltimore Sun, September 24, 2008)
- Small Businesses Get Help with Insurance (The Business Gazette, July 11, 2008)
- O'Malley: 100,000 Added to Medicaid Just the Beginning (The Daily Record, July 7, 2008)
- Maryland Offers Health Plan Subsidy for Micro Firms (The Washington Post, July 3, 2008)
- Medicaid Reaches More: Maryland Is Patching Together Expanded Coverage for the Low-Income Uninsured (Baltimore Sun, July 1, 2008)
- Dental-Care Access Expands: To Help Poor Children, Md. Increases Medicaid Rates Paid (Washington Post, April 20, 2008)
- State aims to help children without insurance: Letters to notify families who might be eligible for federal program (Baltimore Sun, April 16, 2008)
- Kids’ Health Insurance Plan Moves Forward (Washington Post, March 26, 2008)
- House Approves $31 Billion Budget Along Party Lines (Washington Post, March 21, 2008)
- Maryland Praised for Medicaid Changes Since Death (Washington Post, February 15, 2008)
- Howard’s Health Plan Would Require Legislation (Washington Post, February 7, 2008)
- O’Malley Offers Skinnier Budget (Washington Post, January 17, 2008)
- Assembly Pushes Health Care and Bay Fund across the Finish Line (Montgomery Gazette, November 19, 2007)
- Bid to Expand Medicaid Gets Fresh Momentum (Washington Post, September 12, 2007)
For general resources on state expansions, see Other Resources.
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