Discussing the findings of the Geiger Gibson/RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative report, “Assessing the Potential Impact of State Policies on Community Health Centers’ Outreach and Enrollment Activities,” USAToday’s Kelly Kennedy illuminates the impact of restrictive Navigator Laws in nine non-Medicaid expansion states.
Nine states have passed laws limiting how health care “navigators” can help customers buy insurance and learn if they are eligible for federal help to pay for it, and also declined to expand Medicaid as permitted under the law. The laws, which required that only licensed navigators give out information about insurance plans, have created a culture of fear for health clinic employees who explain the law to the uninsured. Combined with the states’ decision to not expand Medicaid, residents of those states have fewer opportunities to gain access to health care.
