The Effect of Medicaid Expansion on Diabetes Care

Diabetes is a leading cause of death in the United States. Early diagnosis of diabetes and prediabetes reduce the cost and the burden of the disease. Having health insurance coverage is a major enabling factor in receiving diabetes care. Without health insurance, patients would not visit or delay the routine checkups and necessary tests, which has subsequent adverse effects on diabetes management. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the ACA) expands health insurance coverage to millions of Americans, mainly through Medicaid Expansion.

In this study, we examine the impact of the ACA Medicaid expansion on diabetes care. We analyze the effects of Medicaid expansion on access to care for diabetes patients and diabetes management variables. We try to understand the impact of Medicaid expansion among different races/ethnicities, gender, and age groups who are diagnosed with diabetes.

We found that the ACA Medicaid expansion increased the likelihood of having access to health insurance for diabetes patients. Also, we found that Medicaid expansion associated with improvement in several diabetes management variables such as high blood sugar tests. We found a significant gain in access and diabetes management among minority populations because of Medicaid expansion. The result of this study can help researchers and policymakers to have a better understanding of the effect of Medicaid expansion on diabetes care and variation in diabetes management.