In late 2020, the Supreme Court began hearing a case challenging the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which led to coverage gains for many low-income, reproductive-age women. To explore potential implications of a full ACA repeal for this population, we examined gains experienced after Medicaid expansion, assuming that such gains may be reversed. Using restricted 2013 to 2014 data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey for 1190 women ages 18 to 44 with household incomes below 138% of the federal poverty level, we compared the change in healthcare spending and utilization for women living in expansion states to the change in non-expansion states using a difference-in-differences design. We found that if Medicaid expansion were overturned, Medicaid coverage is likely to decrease, as well as Medicaid spending and prescription drug utilization.
Keywords: Medicaid; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; drug utilization; female; insurance coverage; poverty; quasi-experimental study; women’s health; young adult.