More than two thirds of the Ohioans insured under Obamacare are covered by the law’s optional Medicaid expansion.
A total of 234,507 Ohioans have selected a private insurance policy through the federally run Obamacare exchange at HealthCare.gov, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reported Wednesday.
As of January, enrollment in Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s Obamacare Medicaid expansion was 492,121. For every Ohioan choosing an Obamacare exchange plan, two have enrolled in the Obamacare Medicaid expansion.Millions of private health insurance policies nationwide were canceled as a result of Obamacare, but state and federal officials have not disclosed how many of the Ohioans covered under Obamacare were previously insured.
Because Medicaid reimbursement rates to care providers are so low, nearly 40 percent of Ohio State Medical Association doctors surveyed last year said they planned to accept fewer Medicaid patients in 2015.
Ohio Medicaid beneficiaries currently pay no premiums, and — assuming they can find a doctor — they receive the same “minimum essential benefits” Obamacare requires for policies sold at HealthCare.gov.
The exchange offers premium subsidies to Ohioans whose income is between 100 and 400 percent of the federal poverty line. Medicaid expansion coverage extends to 138 percent of the poverty line.
Actual exchange enrollment is likely lower than reported by the Obama administration. HHS figures are inflated by including individuals who choose an exchange plan but never pay a premium, Forbes editor and Manhattan Institute senior fellow Avik Roy explained in a Wednesday story.

















