Major changes to the Medicaid program are being discussed at the federal level, and as a result, the Minnesota Department of Human Services is getting many questions from policymakers, Tribes, counties and a wide variety of partner organizations.  Today, we are providing new materials to help inform discussion about the state’s public health care programs: Medical Assistance, Minnesota’s Medicaid program, and MinnesotaCare.

These materials will educate and inform the public on why Medicaid matters in Minnesota and also address common misconceptions. They offer a comprehensive look at the people who receive Medicaid and MinnesotaCare services and how these health care programs help the state’s health care providers. The materials highlight the impact of the programs at the state and county levels as well as at a regional level that approximates Minnesota’s Congressional Districts. 

The three fact sheets are now available to share from our “Medicaid Matters” online toolkit: mn.gov/dhs/medicaid-matters/communications-toolkit.

• “10 ways Minnesota Medicaid matters to you” 
• “Medicaid Matters: We’re all healthier when we’re all covered” 
• “Medicaid Matters: Investing in Minnesota’s health care” 

Feel free to share these resources in your networks about the impact of Medicaid and MinnesotaCare in Minnesota. High level takeaways from the fact sheets: 

• Medicaid is the largest single source of health insurance in Minnesota. That means Medical Assistance plays a key role in the state’s all-time low uninsurance rate of 3.8%.
• Medicaid helps Minnesota families: Roughly two-thirds of Medical Assistance enrollees are parents, children and pregnant people.
• Medicaid helps the state’s most vulnerable with more than 60% of spending on services and support for people with disabilities or who are 65 or older. It covers half of long-term care costs for Minnesotans. 
• Medicaid pays for more of Minnesota’s mental health services than any other payer.
• Medicaid has an outsized impact in Greater Minnesota with enrollment making up a higher percentage of the total population in many Greater Minnesota counties compared to the metro area.
• Medicaid helps the youngest among us start out their lives on the right foot, covering about 41% of our kids and 3 out of 10 births.
• Medicaid and MinnesotaCare contribute significantly to the state’s health care sector, decreasing the cost of uncompensated care and reducing the amount of medical debt owed by Minnesotans.

DHS will update you as we have more resources to share. In the meantime, we stand ready to analyze forthcoming proposals to change the Medicaid and MinnesotaCare programs. We will share these assessments with you as they’re ready.

Thank you,

John M. Connolly, Ph.D., M.S.Ed.

Pronouns: he/him/his

Deputy Commissioner, State Medicaid Director

Minnesota Department of Human Services