ACA in Kentucky and Arkansas expands preventive and medical services

Two years after Medicaid coverage was expanded under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in their states, the uninsured rate among low-income residents in Arkansas dropped from 42% in 2013 to 14% in 2015, and in Kentucky it dropped from 40% to 9% during the same time frame. (In comparison, in Texas, which didn’t opt to expand Medicaid coverage under ACA, the uninsured rate went from 39% to 32% during those years.) As a result, “low-income adults in Kentucky and Arkansas received more primary and preventive care, made fewer emergency department visits, and reported higher quality care and improved health compared with low-income adults in Texas,” the study stated.

To read the study, called, “Changes in Utilization and Health Among Low-Income Adults After Medicaid Expansion or Expanded Private Insurance,” Benjamin D. Sommers, Robert J. Blendon, E. John Orav, Arnold M. Epstein, JAMA Internal Medicine, online August 8, 2016, visit:

doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2016:4419

Leave a Comment