his Dex alt, asked about expanding healthcare further.

As the reader will know, the NC GQO fought expanding healthcare access for a decade. Now that they have given in, healthcare in NC is booming. Here 'tis

North Carolina marked one year since Medicaid expansion was signed into law Wednesday.

The signing of the law on March 27, 2023, meant 600,000 North Carolinians would become eligible for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act.

Since enrollment began on Dec. 1, 2023, more than 398,000 people have enrolled. (The reader will note the disparity in dates. That is because in their last show of defiance, the GQP signed the law in March but delayed its start until December.)

Secretary of the State Department of Health and Human Services Kody Kinsley said the latest numbers put the start more than two-thirds of the way toward its two-year goal.

“We're moving at a breakneck pace,” Kinsley said. “Now part of that is because we had done a lot of investments in our technology that allowed us to put a lot of people on automatically.”

Kinsley estimates about 25% of people signing up for Medicaid are enrolling completely electronically.

“What's exciting is that people aren't just getting covered, they're getting care, nearly a half a million prescriptions have been filled 10s of millions of dollars for services rendered at a provider's office,” Kinsley said.

The latest numbers available through the NC Medicaid Expansion Enrollment Dashboard show numbers continue to increase in rural areas.

“Relative to the size of population, we are outpacing signups in our rural communities more than urban communities,” said Kinsley.

Kinsley said Robeson County has the highest percentage of adults signing up through the expansion.

Cassandra Brooks runs two daycare centers in Wake and Johnston counties.

She became an advocate for Medicaid expansion after one her employees, Brenda Pernell, passed way last spring.

“Some people just see stuff on paper or you just see statistics; this really hit home,” said Brooks.

Brooks said Brenda knew she had high blood pressure but couldn’t afford healthcare for regular visits.

“She was a mom of three children and had a husband, but they just couldn’t make it, even though they were working every day,” explained Brooks.

Pernell said Brooks eventually went to be checked out and was told she needed to have heart surgery the next day.

But before the surgery could happen, Pernell suffered a fatal stroke.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” said Brooks. “This North Carolinian died from a preventable condition because she did not have access to healthcare. That is not okay.”

Brooks said at that point she began to travel the state to advocate for expansion efforts to help expand care to those with lower incomes.

Pernell is one of those who would’ve qualified for healthcare coverage under the expansion.

Kinsley said most of the prescriptions being filled under the new expansion are for “seizures, asthma and other chronic conditions.”

He continued, “These are likely illnesses that these individuals were struggling with for a long time. They were probably, and many of us know these stories or have experienced them ourselves, finding coupons to try to cover them or asking a family member or a friend to pitch in.”

Courtesy WRAL
[Post edited by Lazarus at 03/28/2024 08:59AM]