NORFOLK, va. (WVEC) — About 50,000 more low-income adults in Hampton Roads are now eligible to enroll in Medicaid benefits.
State lawmakers voted to expand Medicaid coverage to more people earlier this year, and the expansion enrollment began Thursday throughout Virginia.
"This is an incredible moment, we've been working for 5 years to get to this point," said Massey Whorley on behalf of the Virginia Department of Social Services at an enrollment event in Norfolk.
A single person making less than $16,700 per year is now eligible for Medicaid. That number is higher than in previous years. The income-level cutoff is higher for families.
Megan Padden, Optima Health's Vice President of Government Programs, said the Medicaid expansion reaches people who were in a gap making more money than the Medicaid cutoff, but not enough to pay for insurance on the marketplace.
"Now there's really no cost for them, and there's really no risk for them," Padden said. "There's no reason for them not to take advantage of this opportunity to get access to healthcare.
Padden said Medicaid covers prescriptions, doctor visits, flu shots, mammograms, and many other healthcare needs.
"People have nothing to lose and everything to gain by enrolling in Medicaid expansion," she said.
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