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Enrollment Begins for Virginia Expansion of Medicaid

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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia is set to start accepting enrollment applications from the roughly 400,000 low-income adults newly eligible for Medicaid.

Gov. Ralph Northam announced Thursday that the state would begin accepting applications on Nov. 1 for new coverage that will begin at the start of 2019.

State lawmakers voted to expand Medicaid earlier this year, joining a majority of other states that have already expanded publicly funded health care to low-income adults. Medicaid expansion is a key part of former President Barack Obama's signature health care law.

Northam said the federal government has recently signed off on Virginia's request to expand its Medicaid program.

The state has a website, www.coverva.org , to help people sign up.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.