For low-income older adults, Medicaid is critical to filling the gaps in care and services that Medicare doesn’t cover, such as oral health, vision, hearing, long-term services and supports, and transportation . Medicaid also helps to pay for Medicare out-of-pocket costs, including Medicare premiums and cost- sharing. As a needs-based program administered by states, access to Medicaid and the rules that govern who qualifies vary from state to state. The barriers to accessing Medicaid are many, including strict income and asset limits, a confusing redetermination process, and more. Justice in Aging is engaged at the state and federal level to expand access to Medicaid by easing the overly stringent rules that bar people who need help from accessing the program, and ensuring older adults of color, LGBTQ+ older adults and others are not systematically excluded from the program or harmed by federal and state laws that seek to recovery Medicaid long-term care costs from the estates of deceased enrollees.
