The proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act could cost Ohio as much as $8.5 billion over the next eight years, according to a report out this morning from a statewide research group.
The Center for Community Solutions estimates that the ACA repeal could mean Ohio would pay between $6.4 billion and $8.5 billion through 2025 to maintain the Medicaid program. Researcher Loren Anthes says almost three million Ohioans are on Medicaid so it has a huge reach.
“It pays for 1 in 2 births in the state of Ohio. It pays for coverage for 1 in 4 Ohioans generally. And when you get into places like Vinton County, 40 percent of the total population is on the Medicaid program.”
Anthes says even if federal funding for Medicaid expansion is maintained at 80 percent, he projects it would cost Ohio up to 1.1 billion to insure the 700,000 people who are covered under it.
