(DES MOINES) – Gov. Terry Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds today unveiled the Healthy Iowa Plan that will cover all of the approximately 89,000 uninsured Iowans earning below 100 percent of federal poverty level.
“The Healthy Iowa Plan is a modern health plan that will pay providers to care for their whole population and based on the quality of care they deliver, while rewarding positive health outcomes,” said Branstad. “Under our Healthy Iowa Plan, more Iowans will be served by the private insurance market, with access to affordable plans available through health benefits exchanges.”
The Healthy Iowa Plan is designed to help those who use it become healthier while being sustainable for the long-term. The plan reduces the uninsured in Iowa while also preserving an essential safety net for Iowa’s neediest.
READ MORE ABOUT THE HEALTHY IOWA PLAN
“Governor Branstad and I have set the ambitious goal of making Iowa the healthiest state in the nation,” said Reynolds. “To get there, we know it is critically important for Iowans to take ownership of their health. The Healthy Iowa plan increases access to health care coverage while encouraging a healthy lifestyle.”
The Healthy Iowa Plan uses a sustainable financing strategy that provides hardworking Iowa taxpayers with budget certainty. The proposal fits within Branstad’s two-year budget and five-year budget projection with a total funding pool of $162 million. New funding for the plan comes through Medicaid savings created by synchronizing traditional Medicaid eligibility with benefits available through the Affordable Care Act. The savings is redirected to covering uninsured Iowans at or below the poverty level.
