While Medicaid is primarily designed for individuals and families with low income, it is not strictly for the poor. Eligibility is based on income, household size, age, and disability status, with options for specific, non-poor populations like children with special needs or seniors requiring long-term care.
Medicaid basics
In all states, Medicaid provides coverage for low-income people, including families and children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Some states expanded their Medicaid program to cover adults below a certain income level.
In all states, Medicaid gives health coverage to some individuals and families, including children, parents, people who are pregnant, elderly people with certain incomes, and people with disabilities. Some states have expanded their Medicaid programs to cover other adults below a certain income level.
Medicaid is the primary program providing comprehensive coverage of health and long-term care to about 80 million low-income people in the United States. Medicaid accounts for nearly one-fifth of health care spending (and over half of spending for long-term care) and a large share of state budgets.
Medicaid eligibility is generally determined based on an individual's age, health condition and income level (including, in some cases, an asset test). Approximately 42% of Medicaid beneficiaries are adults, 36% are children, 10% are disabled, and 10% are age 65 or older.
Who and what relies on Medicaid?
Authorized by Title XIX of the Social Security Act, Medicaid was signed into law in 1965 alongside Medicare. All states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories have Medicaid programs designed to provide health coverage for low-income people.
Medicaid provides health care coverage for eligible low-income individuals, including children and their families, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities. Medicaid also pays for Medicare premiums and cost sharing for individuals who are dually enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare.
The most common reason an applicant is denied Medicaid is income or assets above the eligibility criteria. In most states in 2026, an applicant's monthly income must be less than $2,982/month, and their assets (including money in bank accounts) must be less than $2,000.
And clients view Medicaid as a mixed blessing: It offers a vital health benefits life line, but they view it as stigmatizing, and obtaining care is often frustrating. Both sides of the ideological aisle also have their reasons to dislike the Medicaid program.
In the era before modern surgery and antibiotics, care for all but the very elite was provided by unschooled healers such as midwives, "bone-setters," and apothecaries. Their fees were low, and many would barter their services for crops or food.
Medicaid, the public health insurance program covering more than 72 million people with low income, is jointly funded by states and the federal government. Medicaid spending totaled around $890 billion in the 2023 federal fiscal year, with the federal government paying 69 percent and states paying 31 percent.
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that, together with the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), provides health coverage to over 77.9 million Americans, including children, pregnant women, parents, seniors, and individuals with disabilities.
A larger share of Medicaid and CHIP enrollees are Hispanic and non- Hispanic Black than the U.S. population, and a smaller share are non-Hispanic White. Sources: 2020 T-MSIS Analytic Files Annual Demographic and Eligibility File, Release 1; 2020 Race/Ethnicity Imputation Companion File; 2019 American Community Survey.
The worst, in order from 50th to 41st, are in Mississippi, Idaho, Texas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Indiana, South Carolina, Colorado, Alabama, and Missouri.
The remaining 8% of Medicaid adults reported that they are retired, unable to find work, or were not working for another reason.
Eligibility rules differ between states. In states that have expanded Medicaid coverage: You can qualify based on your income alone. If your household income is below 133% of the federal poverty level (FPL), you qualify.
New Survey Data Confirms that Stigma Persists for Medicaid
Half (49%) said Medicaid is not important to their family. 77% believe most adults on Medicaid are unemployed (when in fact, many are working, caregiving, or disabled). 69% support work requirements for Medicaid access.