45,000 Idahoans sign up for Medicaid under expansion

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - More than 45,000 Idaho residents have signed up for Medicaid under expanded coverage according to numbers released Tuesday by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

That's about half of the 91,000 people the agency estimates are eligible to sign up under the expansion.

Voters authorized Medicaid expansion last year with an initiative that passed with 61% of the vote after years of inaction by state lawmakers.

But lawmakers earlier this year added restrictions requiring five waivers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Waivers are required when states want to deviate from Medicaid rules. Federal officials have yet to approve any of Idaho's requested waivers, but enrollment is proceeding with coverage starting Jan. 1.