Where You Live Matters: A National Cancer Database Study of Medicaid Expansion and Endometrial Cancer Outcomes

Abstract Objective To determine associations between adoption of Medicaid expansion (ME) and changes in insurance status, early stage diagnosis, and cancer survival among women with endometrial carcinoma (EC). Methods The National Cancer Database (NCDB) was queried for patients diagnosed with EC between the age 40–64 from 2004 to 2015. Difference-in-differences analysis quantified the impact of ME on the proportion of new EC diagnoses with insurance (vs. uninsured), the proportion diagnosed with stage I (vs. II-IV), and overall survival. Results 156,253 patients were included. Among 65,019 women living in ME states, ME is associated with an increase in the percent of EC cases who are insured of 1.4% (95% CI 0.9–2.0%, p  Conclusions Among women with EC, ME positively impacted insurance coverage, an important hurdle in accessing health care. In women aged 53–57, ME was associated with earlier stage at diagnosis and improved survival, suggesting that the magnitude of the improvement in insurance coverage may correlate with important clinical outcomes. Efforts should continue to understand the complexity of barriers to health care access and to develop effective strategies to surmount them.