Health

No one should have to go without the medical care they need simply because they can’t afford it. Investments in Medicaid, ALL Kids, mental health care and other health services help Alabamians stay healthy and productive, and they lay the foundation for a future where all of our residents have a chance to thrive, regardless of their income or background.

Arise works to identify and eliminate the structural barriers that prevent many of our friends and neighbors across the state from accessing the health care they need. We examine how a variety of policy solutions, including Medicaid expansion, would help break down those walls and strengthen the health care infrastructure on which all Alabamians rely.

Fact Sheet

It’s time to expand Medicaid and close Alabama’s coverage gap

Here are five reasons it’s time to expand Medicaid and close Alabama’s coverage gap: Nearly 300,000 Alabamians with low incomes would benefit from Medicaid expansion. People in the coverage gap earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough for an affordable private health insurance plan on the Marketplace. This leaves them in the [...]
Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
April 10, 2023
Author
Alabama Arise
Personal Stories

Cover Alabama Lobby Day 2023

The Cover Alabama coalition held its first Lobby Day on March 21 on the steps of the State House in Montgomery. Faith leaders, community advocates and people living in Alabama's health coverage gap spoke about the importance of Medicaid expansion for their families and communities. Advocates then met with lawmakers to urge them to save [...]
Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
March 23, 2023
Author
Matt Okarmus
Report

PARCA presentation on Medicaid expansion in Brewton

Medicaid expansion would save lives, create jobs and strengthen the health care system across Alabama. Ryan Hankins, executive director of the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA), gave a presentation on Medicaid expansion's benefits at a public event that Alabama Arise co-hosted on Feb. 27, 2023, at DW McMillan Memorial Hospital in Brewton.
Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
March 17, 2023
Author
Matt Okarmus
Personal Stories

Brewton community event on Medicaid expansion in Alabama

“Our rural hospital is the first line of care for the people in our community. If someone’s really sick, they need to be stabilized. They can be stabilized here quickly and efficiently. If our hospital closed ... people will die.” That was the blunt reality that Dr. Marsha Raulerson shared at a health care panel [...]
Issues
Medicaid Expansion, Health
Date
March 17, 2023
Author
Matt Okarmus
Fact Sheet

Expand Medicaid and close Alabama’s health coverage gap

For years, Gov. Kay Ivey and legislators have said cost is the barrier to covering Alabamians with low incomes through Medicaid. However, thanks to new federal incentives for Medicaid expansion, any concerns about that barrier are gone. Now more than ever before, we have the opportunity to ensure no Alabamian has to choose between going [...]
Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
March 14, 2023
Author
Debbie Smith
Personal Stories

See The Gap: ‘Possibilities that we just can’t afford’

Kayla is a talented, young hairstylist who has built up a successful clientele in one of Birmingham’s hippest salons. She’s been a stylist for 12 years and said she loves the independence it gives her. She sees dozens of clients every week and takes great pride in her work.

“It’s a great industry, but it’s not taken as seriously as it needs to be,” Kayla said. “Especially relative to the number of people that come through our doors to get their hair done.

Kayla grew up in a small town in Walker County but started her career in an “Over the Mountain” suburb south of Birmingham. The salon served a wealthier clientele, but it didn’t offer many benefits to stylists. Among the benefits she didn’t have: employer-provided health insurance.

Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
March 1, 2023
Author
Whit Sides
Personal Stories

See the Gap: ‘A bigger problem in our industry’

Barbers and stylists in Alabama often work for themselves, and that comes with a cost. One Birmingham barber in the state's health coverage gap said he decided against getting health insurance because premiums were close to $1,000 monthly. In his own words: "Me personally? I don't go to the doctor. I think it's part of [...]
Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
February 16, 2023
Author
Whit Sides
Fact Sheet

The workforce benefits of Medicaid expansion in Alabama

For nearly a decade, Alabama has been outside looking in on a good deal. While hundreds of thousands of Alabamians continue to struggle without health insurance, state leaders have failed to expand Medicaid. A few loud voices have politicized an issue that never should have been political. And our state has paid the price in [...]
Issues
Health, Economic Opportunity, Medicaid Expansion
Date
February 6, 2023
Author
Mike Nicholson
Personal Stories

See the Gap: ‘You’ve got to be able to deliver when folks need you to’

Trent Thomas, 42, has been doing hair for a while now. And the first thing he’ll tell you is how much of a good thing he’s got going.  “I love it here for a million reasons – some superficial – but it really is such a great place to be,” he said, showing off his boss’s massive plant collection visible from the street outside. Trent was able to keep his job and his paycheck at Orbit Salon, in Birmingham’s Five Points South neighborhood, even when the world slowed down in 2020.

Issues
Medicaid Expansion, Health
Date
January 26, 2023
Author
Whit Sides
Personal Stories

See the Gap: ‘Someone’s got to do something for working folks’

When I first met Katie Franklin, she was juggling requests from three guests at the same time. I’ve been visiting Nail World II, right outside Birmingham, for nearly 20 years, but this visit was different. Someone new was greeting me at the door. Katie is a presence who is not easily forgotten. I learned she was the new salon manager. Honestly, it felt like she was right at home. She made greeting 25 to 30 customers an hour look easy. Her maternal aura and gregarious nature shone bright through all the hustle and bustle.

Issues
Health, Medicaid Expansion
Date
December 22, 2022
Author
Whit Sides
All Issue Resources