Report says Craven would see job, tax benefits from Medicaid expansion

Sun Journal (New Bern, NC)

Jul. 3--An expansion of North Carolina's Medicaid program could bring $35.5 million in growth to Craven County's economy from 2020 to 2022, according to a new non-partisan report that focuses on the economic benefits of expanding Medicaid in the state. The report was prepared by researchers at George Washington University with funding from Cone Health Foundation and the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, which works to improve health care for Forsyth County residents.

The report provides a county-by-county look at the number of jobs, new Medicaid enrollees and economic growth that would result from a state-wide expansion.

According to the report, expanding Medicaid in North Carolina would create more than 37,000 jobs and insure approximately 365,000 more people across the state.

Locally, the expansion would lead to the creation of 169 more jobs and 5,720 more Medicaid recipients in Craven County by 2022, according to the report. About half the jobs created would be in health care, such as hospitals or clinics, while the rest would be in other sectors like construction or retail and wholesale trade.

The report states that Medicaid expansion would also bring $390,000 more in Craven County tax revenue from 2020 to 2022

"This ripple effect occurs because Medicaid funding received by hospitals, clinics or drug stores is used to pay workers' salaries and to buy other goods and services. The economic benefits multiply as these funds are, in turn, used to pay for mortgages or rent, buy food and pay state and county taxes," the report states.

Currently, nearly 16 percent of non-elderly adults in North Carolina are uninsured, a rate that is above the national average of 12 percent, according to the George Washington University report.

The analysis finds that, should North Carolina expand Medicaid, the state would receive $11.7 billion more in federal funding over a three year period. By 2022, over 600,000 additional North Carolinians would receive Medicaid coverage. It would also increase state and county tax revenues by over $600 million from 2020 to 2022, according to the analysis.

North Carolina is currently one of 14 states that have chosen not to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. According to the George Washington University report, eligibility requirements in North Carolina are the ninth most restrictive in the country.

North Carolina currently provides Medicaid coverage to parents with family incomes up to 42 percent of the federal poverty line, but does not cover most non-elderly, non-disabled adults without dependent children, regardless of their incomes.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has proposed expanding Medicaid eligibility to 138 percent for both parents and low-income adults.

North Carolina Senate Leader Phil Berger has disputed reports that Medicaid expansion would boost the economy and provide healthcare to those in need.

"A full accounting of the facts leads to the inescapable conclusion that expanding Medicaid would be a mistake that not only will fail to solve the problems its proponents claim it solves, but will create new problems and rekindle problems that have just recently been put to rest -- such as Medicaid cost overruns and yearly budget deficits," Berger said in a press release.

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