MaineCare Option for Workers with Disabilities: A Survey of Past and Present Enrolleess

This report describes the results of a telephone survey of enrollees in the MaineCare Option for Workers with Disabilities (MaineCare is Maine's Medicaid program, the Workers Option is one of a growing number of state initiatives across the country that are referred to as Medicaid Buy-In programs).The Workers Option is a MaineCare eligibility category that provides full MaineCare coverage for working people with disabilities who have countable income up to 250% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) and who do not have unearned income above 100% FPL. The purpose of the Workers Option is to encourage people with disabilities to increase their job earnings without fear of losing health coverage. It is authorized under the federal Balanced Budget Act of 1997, one of two ways that states can develop Medicaid-related work incentives of this type. Maine's Bureau of Elder and Adult Services (BEAS), Maine Department of Human Services, commissioned the survey to find out more about the people who were or ever had been enrolled in the Workers Option. BEAS wanted to know about their work experience, their support services needs (particularly their use of personal assistant services), and their opinions and concerns about receiving health coverage under the Workers Option.