About 53,000 are getting free Medicaid coverage through the health law’s optional expansion of the program. “I’m just kind of finding my way, so the health insurance is so helpful.”For Ms. Hurd, health care has been something to avoid since she and her husband got the marketplace plan shortly after Harry’s birth last year. The story was about a report that found Medicaid recipients used health care more aggressively than marketplace customers, presumably because their coverage was free. She hopes to get a college degree, find a more stable career and get access to employer health coverage. “I understand that some people cannot afford health care and shouldn’t just be left to suffer,” she said.

Source: New York Times February 19, 2018 20:10 UTC