Danielle Garrett, Health Policy Analyst

Halloween is just around the corner and I’m pretty psyched about the arrival of haunted houses and scary movie marathons. I’m not easily scared. I will watch The Shining without flinching; I was thrilled about the new season of American Horror Story starting, and one of the first things I do when visiting a new city is look for a good ghost tour. One thing that does have me frightened though (other than the ridiculous lines at Party City the weekend before Halloween) is the prospect that some States may not expand Medicaid eligibility in 2014.

The Affordable Care Act extends health coverage to 30 million currently uninsured Americans through tax credits to purchase private insurance and a major expansion of Medicaid eligibility to all qualified individuals under age 65 who have incomes below 133 percent of the federal poverty line (FPL) (about $30,000 for a family of four). The Medicaid eligibility expansion accounts for approximately half of the coverage gains under the new healthcare law.

We’ve heard a lot of talk in the news lately about women’s health and a lot of talk about the Medicare program, but these things aren’t mutually exclusive. Medicare is a vitally important program for older women and preserving Medicare means preserving women’s health and economic well-being.

Women make up over half of Medicare beneficiaries and nearly two-thirds of beneficiaries over age 80. But it isn’t just the makeup of the program that makes Medicare so important to women. Older women also have other unique health and financial needs that mean they rely on the Medicare program more heavily than older men. Women have greater health care needs in their old age, as they live longer than men and are more likely to suffer from chronic conditions. Nationally, 49% of women with Medicare report having 3 or more chronic conditions compared to just 38% of men.