Montana’s Medicaid program provides Montanans with low-incomes access to health care benefits and services based on their medical needs and life circumstances. Its Healthy Montana Kids program is the largest provider of health care for children in the state. Medicaid more broadly serves as a safety net for Montanans who are blind and disabled, women who are pregnant or have breast or cervical cancer, families with dependent children, and other adults with low incomes.
- Medicaid provides coverage for one in four Montanans (265,000 people).
- Medicaid is jointly funded with the federal government, which reimbursed Montana for 75 cents of every dollar spent on member care in State Fiscal Year 2019.
- Medicaid expansion was central to reducing the rate of uninsured Montanans by half since 2008.
- Nearly two-thirds (65%) of Medicaid recipients live in rural Montana, and nearly 50,000 American Indians have coverage through Medicaid.
- Seniors and individuals with disabilities comprise only 15% of the Medicaid population but contribute to 40% of Medicaid expenditures.
- Medicaid-covered behavioral telehealth service visits increased by over 1,400% through August 2020, as Medicaid waived in-person service delivery requirements for many physical and behavioral health services during the pandemic.
In 2021, we released our first annual report on Medicaid in Montana. This report was developed through a data-sharing agreement with the State of Montana, and Manatt Health completed the analysis. The report will help Montanans understand how Medicaid impacts that state budget, economy, and the health of its citizens.
Resources
This report provides an in-depth analysis of Montana’s Medicaid program, its beneficiaries and costs, and how it affects the health system and health outcomes of Montanans.
Montana Medicaid: Improving Health in Montana
This one-pager summarizes the most important findings of the Medicaid in Montana report on how Medicaid is improving health in the state.
New Report Examines Impact of Montana’s Medicaid Program
Press release announcing Medicaid in Montana: How Medicaid Affects Montana’s State Budget, Economy, and Health.
Medicaid is Working for Montana
Opinion by Montana Healthcare Foundation CEO Dr. Aaron Wernham and Headwaters Foundation CEO Brenda Solorzano.
