Committee unanimously supports Dr. Evans’ bill to improve health coverage enrollment process

AUGUSTA – A bill sponsored by Rep. Dr. Richard Evans, D-Dover-Foxcroft, to make it more efficient for people to find out if they qualify for free or reduced-cost health coverage was unanimously endorsed by the Legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee on May 18. The vote was 13-0.

The bill, LD 1390, establishes a process to use the state’s income tax filing system to identify individuals and families who are uninsured but potentially eligible for benefits under the MaineCare program or for enrollment in a qualified reduced-cost health plan.

“I am very gratified by the overwhelming support from the committee,” said Dr. Evans. “This bill will help a lot of people get access to the health coverage they need.”

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, in 2019, 8.1 percent of Maine people, or more than 100,000 residents, were uninsured, a number that has almost certainly gone up as people lost their employer-based coverage due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Too often, individuals and families find that trying to navigate the system by themselves becomes overwhelming and perplexing,” said Dr. Evans. “They simply give up. This bill would assist people who may be completely unaware that they qualify for low or no cost health coverage.”

The bill now faces further votes in the House and Senate.

Dr. Evans is a physician and surgeon and represents seven communities in Piscataquis County. He is in his first term in the Maine House of Representatives and serves on the Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee.