On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed the law establishing the Medicare and Medicaid programs. With that, the prospects for healthier living and a more secure future brightened for millions of Americans. The Medicaid program, designed as a federal-state partnership, was created to provide health coverage for low-income families and children, pregnant women, the elderly and people with disabilities. Medicaid is highly adaptable, which is central to its capacity to rise to complex new challenges.

Medicaid is designed to provide health coverage for our nation’s most vulnerable individuals and families. Medicaid makes it possible for millions of children, parents, pregnant women, people with disabilities and seniors to get the health coverage they need to get healthy and stay healthy.  And now, more low-income adults are eligible for Medicaid than ever before as a result of the Medicaid expansion, implemented with federal support provided through the Affordable Care Act.  

Medicaid is a cost-effective health coverage program. It generally provides a more comprehensive benefit package than private insurance and costs less per beneficiary than private insurance. A recent analysis of Medicaid expenditure data shows that in 2005, for people with similar health status, Medicaid cost 27% less for children and 20% less for adults than private insurance.