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Medicaid coverage North Carolina Ranked 34 of 51

Black Medicaid coverage in North Carolina

26

% of Black residents

About 26% of Black residents of North Carolina receive Medicaid coverage. North Carolina is a Medicaid expansion state.

US national average: 19 % of Black residents

Primary source: KFF Medicaid + State Medicaid Portal

What this means for Black residents of North Carolina

That figure runs materially above the US national average of 19.0 % of Black residents enrolled.

Medicaid is the single largest payer for Black maternal and infant health care in North Carolina, as it is in every US state. Beyond basic coverage, the coverage-specific levers that matter for Black health outcomes are: doula services coverage (which evidence shows reduces preterm birth and unplanned cesareans), midwife scope of practice (which addresses the obstetric-provider shortage in rural and majority-Black counties), and postpartum extension to 12 months (which reduces mortality in the post-delivery period when most maternal deaths actually occur).

The figures on this page are drawn from KFF Medicaid + State Medicaid Portal, which is the canonical public dataset for this indicator. See the References section below for supporting citations from MMWR, NEJM, and JAMA where the underlying drivers have been studied.

Policy actions

North Carolina has adopted Medicaid expansion under the ACA, which cut the Black uninsured rate roughly in half since 2013. The ongoing policy challenge is enrollment churn — people losing coverage when eligibility is re-determined annually — which disproportionately affects Black enrollees due to addressing / employment instability.

Where to get help in North Carolina

  • Enroll in Medicaid or CHIP (North Carolina): Start at Medicaid.gov
  • ACA marketplace coverage: Healthcare.gov (open enrollment + special enrollment periods)
  • FQHCs serve uninsured patients on a sliding-fee scale in North Carolina: browse FQHCs

References & primary sources

  1. Primary dataset: KFF Medicaid + State Medicaid Portal
  2. KFF Medicaid Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity, State Health Facts. kff.org state indicator
  3. CMS Medicaid.gov State Overviews.

Data refreshed:

Where to go next

A number changes nothing on its own. These are the North Carolina pages that act on it.

Find a Black doctor in North Carolina Our directory of Black clinicians, filtered by specialty, insurance, and city. 612 community health centers in North Carolina Sliding-scale fees, uninsured welcome. Compare services and hours before you call. Medicaid in North Carolina Who qualifies, how to apply, and what the program covers. North Carolina county by county The statewide number hides the counties carrying it. See where you live.

States ranked next to North Carolina on Medicaid coverage

More Black health data for North Carolina

Maternal mortality Infant mortality Cardiovascular mortality Diabetes prevalence Breast cancer mortality Prostate cancer mortality Life expectancy Uninsured rate Mental health access

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