Approximately how many uninsured adults will fall into the coverage gap?

The coverage gap refers to a situation where low-income individuals find themselves unable to qualify for Medicaid but also do not make enough income to qualify for subsidies to purchase insurance through the Health Insurance Marketplace. Under the Affordable Care Act, when states did not expand Medicaid, a significant number of uninsured adults fell into this gap.

Estimates indicate that around 5 million adults are impacted by this issue across the United States, highlighting a substantial number of individuals who lack access to affordable healthcare options due to their income level being above the poverty threshold needed for Medicaid eligibility but below the threshold that would qualify them for premium tax credits. The figure of 5 million effectively illustrates the scale of the problem created by the uneven implementation of Medicaid expansion across different states.