NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A University of Tennessee economic study commissioned by advocates for Medicaid expansion says Gov. Bill Haslam's Insure Tennessee could create 15,000 jobs and bring $1.14 billion in new spending to the state.
According to the study released Monday by UT's Center for Business and Economic Research, an estimated 200,000 of the 470,000 eligible Tennesseans would participate in Haslam's proposed version of Medicaid expansion.
The $1.14 billion figure comes from an estimated $5,705 in medical spending by each of those 200,000 people.
The study was commissioned by the Coalition for a Healthy Tennessee, a nonprofit that supports expanding insurance for those who cannot afford it. The study advocates for Insure Tennessee, saying the program would lead to a "healthier population, a more productive workforce, and more effective public health interventions."