With federal approval, NC on track to expand Medicaid Dec. 1
North Carolina's Medicaid program got a key approval from the federal government this week to expand its health insurance program Dec. 1, keeping North Carolina on track for a change will ultimately provide taxpayer-funded insurance to hundreds of thousands of people.
Gov. Roy Cooper's administration had already announced plans to expand the Medicaid program Dec. 1, a start date delayed several times this summer by legislative budget negotiations.
That timeline depended on formal approval of plan changes from the federal government, which will cover most expansion cost though. That came through Thursday, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said Friday.
The state expects about 600,000 people, most of them the working poor, to qualify. Roughly 300,000 people will be added on the first day because they're already enrolled in a smaller Medicaid program that covers family planning costs and the state knows they'll qualify under the expansion plan's income requirements.
"North Carolina is working hard to prepare for Medicaid expansion to start Dec. 1, and this is an important step," Cooper said in a news release Friday. "Expanding Medicaid is a monumental achievement that will improve the health and lives of hundreds of thousands of people while helping our health care providers and economy."
