Health

How many people are on Medicaid in the US?

Updates published annually
On average, 89 million or 26.1% of the US population during FY 2024. Enrolling about 1 in 4 people in the US, Medicaid is one of the largest single health insurers in the country. Medicaid is a government-funded health insurance program that provides free or low-cost coverage to eligible low-income individuals and families, including children, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities.

89M

enrolled in Medicaid (FY 2024, monthly average)

26.1%

of the US population enrolled in Medicaid (FY 2024)

Since Medicaid was created in the 1960s it’s covered an ever-greater percentage of the population. The 26.1% of people covered in 2024 was more than double the share covered in FY 2001.

In FY 2024, 26.1% of people were covered by Medicaid.

Average monthly Medicaid enrollment as a share of the population

Medicaid enrollment numbers are affected by changes in both economic conditions and policy:

  • During the late 1980s and early 1990s, a series of bills extended coverage to low-income pregnant women and children.
  • The Affordable Care Act (ACA) gave, states the option to extend eligibility to a larger subset of adults — primarily those without dependent children. Since that provision went into effect in 2014, 40 states and Washington, DC, have chosen to do so. The “One Big Beautiful Bill” passed in 2025 added a work requirement for this group of adults to maintain eligibility.
  • During the pandemic, the federal government gave states additional Medicaid funding on the condition that they not remove anyone from the program by rechecking eligibility. This was in effect between 2020 and 2023.



In FY 2024, 89 million people were covered by Medicaid, down 9.4% from its FY 2023 peak. FY 2024 enrollment is also 20.4% higher than the pre-pandemic peak in 2019.

Medicaid enrollment peaked in FY 2023.

Average monthly Medicaid enrollment

Medicaid eligibility is determined by a combination of federal guidelines and state-level rules, primarily based on income, household size, disability status, age, and factors like whether a person is pregnant or has caretaking responsibilities. Enrollees are sorted into five categories:


  • Children (under age 18)
  • Seniors (age 65 and over)
  • People with disabilities (both adults and children)
  • Pregnant women and parents or caretakers
  • Other adults, primarily those without dependent children (limited to states that chose to expand Medicaid after the ACA)


In FY 2022, the latest data available, children were the largest category of enrollees: 33.7 million kids, about 35.8% of total Medicaid recipients.

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In FY 2022, children and adults without dependent children accounted for more than half of all Medicaid enrollees.

Average monthly Medicaid enrollment

States have different enrollment shares because eligibility rules, Medicaid expansion decisions, demographics, and economic conditions vary by state.


In FY 2024, Louisiana had the highest rate of Medicaid enrollment, with 43.6% of its population in the program. Utah had the lowest rate, at 10.4%.

Among states, the Medicaid enrollment rate ranged from 10.4% in Utah to 43.6% in Louisiana.

Average monthly Medicaid enrollment as a share of the population, by state (FY 2024)

Methodology

USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.

Page sources

USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.

  • Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission

    MACStats

  • Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

    Data.Medicaid.gov