The Trump administration on Wednesday approved Maine’s plan to expand Medicaid to the poor under Obamacare after nearly 1.5 years of political and legal battles.
The approval from the Trump administration on Wednesday means that federal funds will start flowing to the state. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which operates the program, also approved allowing benefits to stretch back to July 2, 2018, when the plan would originally have taken effect.
The decision to expand Medicaid to people making roughly $17,000 a year or less was approved by Maine voters in 2017, but held up by former Republican Gov. Paul LePage over concerns about how the state’s share would be paid for. He continued to hold it up despite a judge’s orders to implement it.
When his successor, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, took office, she signed an executive order to allow the expansion to move forward. Every state must get the green light from federal officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to move forward, as the federal government pays for the bulk of Medicaid funds. Maine has been digging into its surplus funds to pay for the expansion while waiting for the approval.
Mills said on Twitter that the approval “marks the culmination of a long-overdue effort to fulfill the will of Maine voters and help tens of thousands of people access healthcare.” Medicaid offers government-funded coverage to people at no cost to them, and in Maine an estimated 70,000 people are expected to be added to the program.
[Related: Maine Gov. Janet Mills plans to gut GOP’s Medicaid work requirement]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has approved Maine’s State Plan Amendments to expand Medicaid (MaineCare). This marks the culmination of a long-overdue effort to fulfill the will of Maine voters and help tens of thousands of people access health care. pic.twitter.com/QzAsRACEWo
— Governor Janet Mills (@GovJanetMills) April 3, 2019
Obamacare was originally written to have all states expand Medicaid to low-income people, but a Supreme Court decision made the provision optional. As a result, just over a dozen states haven’t moved to expand.
