Medicaid, The Government Assistance

3/16/2020

July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed a bill that enacted Medicaid. Medicaid originally gave medical insurance to people who were getting cash assistance. Over the years Medicaid has become the nation’s public health insurance program for people with low income. It has a wide variety of being able to get into the program, even though each state has different requirements. In other words, Medicaid has been evolving over the years to meet the changing needs of the people. For example, it covers “low-income families, pregnant women, people with disabilities, and people who need long-term care”. There are a lot of benefits when a person becomes a recipient of Medicaid. Medicaid help pays for hospitals, community health centers, physicians, nursing homes, and jobs in the health care sector. According to KKF.org, it actually covers “1 in 5 Americans” and based on that there are several people needing Medicaid.
The downfall to being on Medicaid is that those who rely on it for a long time slowly lose their assets and their financial independence. This often leads to having a limited choice of choosing their care and facilities. There are also those who take advantage of being on Medicaid for a long time. Based on that would there be any way to encourage recipients who can still work to find a living? Who do you think should be able to receive the Medicaid benefits? Should it become more restrictive for those who are wanting Medicaid? What should we do with those who are taking advantage of Medicaid? What are your thoughts on Medicaid?

https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/10-things-to-know-about-medicaid-setting-the-facts-straight/
https://www.cms.gov/About-CMS/Agency-information/History/

32 Comments

Faith

3/22/2020 02:02:26 pm

Medicaid has helped tons of people and still continues to do so. Growing up, my sister and I had this healthcare plan and it really helped my family financially. I think it is a very good system. However, I do believe they should let more people have medicaid than they do. There has to be restrictions to everything of course but I think health care is somewhat complicated for people to get now. If their guidlines and qualifications were a little more lienient, it could help a lot of people who are struggling and can't afford to pay hundreds of dollars for health care every month.

Paige

3/22/2020 04:26:31 pm

I'm glad you noted how receiving healthcare can be complicated. There are continual changes to our health, especially as we age, and it is important that we receive the healthcare we need to maintain a healthy and happy lifestyle.

Andy Gebhardt

3/22/2020 05:40:22 pm

I really liked your point of view and I agree there are some changes that could be made. Do you think the current situation we are in could be better if Medicaid was easier to get? Would anything be different?

Alyssa Farnworth

3/22/2020 06:21:52 pm

I agree that the guidelines should be more lenient as there are a lot more people that could use the help.

Kately cockrell

3/23/2020 01:14:57 am

I enjoyed reading your point of view, what would you do to make it different?

Paige Hilton

3/22/2020 04:23:17 pm

There are incentives you can give people so they will work but if nonworking individuals are having their needs taken care of they have no reason to work. I feel that it is up to the individual to decide to work or not.
Medicaid is something I believe helps many people but also provides a way for the nonworking class to remain idle. I feel circumstances of an individual should be further analyzed before they are given the benefits of Medicaid.
There will always be those who take advantage of certain benefits and situations. I honestly do not know how this would be dealt with as there are many who use certain resources to their advantage.

Faith

3/22/2020 04:30:23 pm

I agree that it would be hard to gage what people actually need it and people who take advantage of it.

Andy Gebhardt

3/22/2020 05:41:35 pm

I agree because it is so easy to misuse a lot of assistance from the government. If a person misused it though, what happens when they actually do need help and cannot get Medicaid assistance? Should they be allowed to? What could determine this?

Alyssa Farnworth

3/22/2020 06:20:00 pm

Do you think putting a time limit on the non working individuals would help? For example they would give a person receiving benefits a year to find work otherwise they would not continue their healthcare. Would this make it better or worse?

Kately Cockrell

3/23/2020 01:13:23 am

It definitely is difficult, you can never really tell who is being genuine in their need of the program, and those who really don’t need it

Andy Gebhardt

3/22/2020 05:38:57 pm

Medicaid is another type of assistance designed for people in need, people that cannot pay for services, and people with health issues. In theory it is a great idea, however there are issues with it that need to be changed. The biggest issue I see is that low income families can take advantage of it. I believe most use it wisely but there are people who should be able to get jobs instead of relying on free assistance. There are circumstances that this is different but I just do not believe in free services to people that are not willing to help themselves or their situation. Overall, I believe it is a good service and should continue. There are ways to improve it but there are improvements to everything and nothing can be a perfect plan.

Erykah

3/22/2020 07:17:05 pm

It is unfortunate to see these families take advantage of free health care, and I hope that the future holds a better solution than what we have now. Do you think free health care for every US citizen is in our future?

Tori Weir

3/22/2020 07:39:31 pm

There are many families who use Medicaid wisely and choose to use it to help them. Although Medicaid is always changing to fit the majority needs of family and it can be complicated.

Aiden

3/22/2020 07:54:45 pm

I agree that there are too many people who are using it correctly to remove it by any means.

Alyssa Farnworth

3/22/2020 06:17:26 pm

Medicaid is a great program for those that cannot afford healthcare on their own. Insurance can be incredibly expensive. Personally I believe that the majority of people using this program need it and are not taking advantage of the system. A lot of people argue Medicaid is used by those who do not want to work but in a reality a lot of people who use it do have jobs but they do not make enough to cover insurance or do not have benefits provided in the job they are working. I feel that there are a lot more people struggling that could use the assistance so the guidelines for qualification could be more lenient. Of course there would be some restrictions for those who do take advantage but as a stated I feel that most are not. Healthcare is complicated the best we can do is try to help others.

Paige

3/22/2020 06:45:11 pm

I agree with your point that the people who use Medicaid generally need it and are not misusing it. What restrictions would be best for the individuals who are using Medicaid to their advantage?

Sabrina

3/22/2020 08:25:08 pm

In addition to this, how would one find out who is abusing this program? Should we put more effort into tracking these kinds of things?

Erykah

3/22/2020 07:20:31 pm

Medicaid is a great opportunity for families who cannot afford health care on their own. I think there should be more investigation on people suspected of abusing Medicaid so that more money is available to expand the current guidelines. No one deserves to suffer because they do not have the finances to go to the doctor.

Aiden

3/22/2020 07:51:06 pm

Your personal experience gives me more insight. I do not have enough experience with this to know how many people are using it well or taking advantage.

Madicyn

3/23/2020 12:17:40 pm

I'm sure many people using the program genuinely need it, but I wouldn't be against rules and regulations to ensure people who aren't trying to help themselves either have to try to, or find a different way to have healthcare.

Erykah Foss

3/22/2020 07:13:43 pm

It is difficult to distinguish a definite line on which people should receive Medicaid benefits. There are countless factors that can go into determining the line, which is why we still do not have a solution to this problem. Ideally, everyone in America would have health care, but, unfortunately, our country does not have the finances to implement this. I can imagine a world where one must follow instructions to lead a healthier life in order to continue receiving benefits. Many recipients maintain unhealthy diets that may cause their health problems. Teaching them how to eat better would cause fewer doctor visits, and therefore use less Medicaid money.

There are people who abuse the Medicaid system through billing fraud. These people double bill or receive money even if a patient did not visit (this is known as “phantom billing”). I think there should be more focus on this problem so that more money is given to those in real need instead of selfish people who take advantage of the compassion of others. If you are interested in learning more about Medicaid billing fraud, I recommend this website: https://www.hg.org/legal-articles/what-triggers-a-medicare-or-medicaid-billing-fraud-investigation-46361. Medicaid is ultimately for people who are suffering physically, mentally, and financially. Knowing where to draw the line is a difficult decision that should be made with logic and compassion.

Tori Weir

3/22/2020 07:31:04 pm

It's interesting how people take advantage of Medicaid because so many families truly rely on it. There will always be those types of people who will take advantage. I also like how you mentioned to teach those to maintain a healthier way of life to avoid using Medicaid money.

Sabrina

3/22/2020 08:27:34 pm

I feel like "suffering financially" is a very broad idea. What constitutes this?

Madicyn

3/23/2020 12:19:24 pm

I agree with your statement of how it is hard to draw the line with situations like this. It's hard to distinguish the selfish, or manipulative. from the ones who genuinely need it.

Aiden

3/22/2020 07:49:00 pm

Medicaid is a useful tool to help people during tougher times but is too easy to take advantage of. I think a more restrictive plan would limit people taking advantage of this program. If there was an incentive to make someone profit from getting off Medicaid as soon as they can it would help the number of people taking advantage. It is a difficult situation for those who are currently taking advantage and to deal with them would be hard because every situation is different. It is a good program that would be hard to replace.

Faith

3/22/2020 09:44:19 pm

If they added more restrictions to the program, do you think it would make it harder for someone who really needs it to get it? What type of restrictions should they add?

Brax Kauffman

3/24/2020 04:54:19 pm

What are some ideas you can think of that would better the system in helping the people rather than just supporting them?

Sabrina

3/22/2020 08:23:57 pm

Medicaid is a necessity in our country for the people who would be otherwise unable to support themselves. I know people personally that need it to stay afloat, but I also know people that take advantage of the system. The prior is trying their best to stop relying on it and the latter is trying not to earn more money or not get a job so they can continue to live off of the benefits. I think there should be more of a crackdown for those that continuously live off this or maybe a reward for becoming financially able to support oneself. Overall, I think that this program is very useful and should not be taken down. It can be improved, but so can every other program.

Brax Kauffman

3/24/2020 04:55:10 pm

I think that it could be improved as well with a few changes. What are some ideas that you believe would improve it?

Kately Cockrell

3/23/2020 01:09:08 am

Medicaid is a needed by several people over the country, but with anything that benefits others, people will take advantage of it. It’s not fair to those actively trying to better themselves. It should be regulated so that the freeloaders can be weeded out more easily. It has improved over the years, and can still improve. It greatly benefits much of America, and the country would go into ruin without the program.

Madicyn

3/23/2020 12:15:16 pm

I am a big supporter of programs that are able to help the poor, and the people who are in need, like elders and others. Medicaid is a good program, with good intentions, but like many things, it also gets taken advantage of. I think there should be more regulations and rules on programs like medicaid, and for example food stamps. While, yes it is nice to get things like healthcare and food, for free, I find it morally wrong. While many families have parents working three jobs, having no government program supporting them and their family, we also have people who are unemployed taking these programs and living off of them. I feel like if one is going to use medicaid or food stamps, and they are physically and mentally capable of having a job, then they should be required to find, apply, and work somewhere. Working for what we have is something almost everyone has to do, why do we allow some to love off the government completely?

Brax Kauffman

3/24/2020 04:52:18 pm

Medicaid has been vital in helping many Americans over a long period of time. It can be critical in helping those that cannot fend for themselves at different times in their lives. While this system is used to help many, there are those that can take advantage of the system and use it as an excuse to live off the government for however long they want to. Because of this I believe that there should be standards for the people that receive this help. I know that there are some but if they were refined into helping the people look for jobs and ways to benefit themselves then I believe this system could work much better given enough time. I do not know what the cutoff should be for who received this financial help but I do think it would be useful in doing it based off a percentage of people rather than a specific number of them.

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