Missouri Spends $12 Billion on Medicaid Annually

Have you ever wondered where your tax dollars are going? Annually, Missouri spends about $30 billion, where does that money come from? And where does that money go? This week, Missouri Senator Mike Cunningham ^[1], of the 33rd senatorial district broke down what 40 percent of Missouri’s budget entails, otherwise known as Medicaid.

Healthy Children

Missouri spends roughly $30 billion every year. $10 billion comes from taxes, and $20 billion comes from federal funds. With every passing year, the budget for keeping Missourians healthy grows a little bit larger. Currently, about 40 percent, or $12 billion, of Missouri’s spending is put towards Medicaid costs. Now, almost 1 million Missouri residents have health care thanks to MO HealthNet, which is Missouri’s Medicaid program.

The 33rd senatorial district is made up of eight separate counties, with a total population of over 184,000 people. Right now, 40 percent of Missouri’s children receive insurance benefits through MO HealthNet for Kids or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (also known as CHIP). In 2017, 17,000 children who lived in the 33rd senatorial district where enrolled in one of these two health programs.

Federally Qualified Health Centers

Your tax dollars don’t just support the health of children across Missouri; they also support Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC’s) that are scattered across Missouri. FQHC’s mainly provide affordable dental and behavioral health services. Currently, there are twelve FQHC medical clinics in the 33rd senatorial district, with at least one in each county.

Senator Cunningham would like Missourians to know that even though the state budget has many demands placed upon it, one of his priorities is keeping Missourians healthy.