MaineCare coverage: Now you're in, now you're out

By JOSIE HUANG, Staff Writer

Copyright © 2004 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

E-mail this story to a friend

	Staff photo by Doug Jones Neil Freeman's employment fluctuates with his health. Sometimes the Portland man qualifies for MaineCare. At others, he turns to the Salvation Army and a free clinic.
	RELATED STORIES Meet the uninsured Young workers take their chances Qualifying for health program means accepting cut in income When luck runs out, uninsured gardener turns to the hospital Free clinics struggle to fill widening void In Depth: Health Care has information, stories and polls regarding Dirigo Health and what it means to Mainers. To top of story

Lose job, get on Medicaid. Get job, lose Medicaid. That's been Neil Freeman's story for the last seven years.

Freeman, a 35-year-old who lives in Portland, typically works a 40-hour week, but that is disrupted when he has to miss work for health reasons - he battles diabetes, asthma and depression - or an appointment related to a years-long custody battle.

That usually leads to his firing and a drop in income that makes him eligible for government-subsidized health care through Medicaid, known in the state as MaineCare.

"I usually qualify for three months, and for three months, I usually do really well health-wise," Freeman says.

But because he needs to pay the bills - about $400 for rent, $90 in child support payments, $80 for car insurance, $50 for gas - Freeman quickly finds handyman jobs like painting apartments or laying carpet.

His income spikes, and he's kicked off the MaineCare rolls. But his income, no more than $15,000 a year, is still not enough for him to purchase a health insurance policy that will help cover the approximately 10 different pills he needs.

"I end up having to choose between food and medication," says Freeman, who is thankful for meals from friends and employers and free prescription drugs from the Salvation Army.

For medical services, he goes to the free clinic in Buxton called the Leavitt's Mill Health Center, where he says the nurses are kind and "I don't feel terrible coming here."

Now he is receiving MaineCare, but he knows that won't last long. To escape the cycle, he is considering taking out student loans so he can get an education that will lead to a good-paying job with health benefits.

"I can use my brain and perhaps raise the bar more," he says.

- Josie Huang

To top of page