Impact of the Affordable Care Act Medicaid Expansion on Weight Loss among Community Health Center Patients with Obesity

Context: Obesity affects over 40% of the US population and is linked to multiple preventable health conditions which can cause premature morbidity and mortality. Weight loss of at least 5% in patients with obesity reduces their risk of comorbid conditions and leads to improvement in some conditions, such as diabetes. Patients with obesity from underserved populations are less likely to access primary and preventive care services. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) improved access to care, which may in turn improve access to obesity prevention and treatment and assist with weight loss.

Objective: Assess whether the proportion of patients with a weight loss ≥5% was higher in states that expanded Medicaid relative to non-expansion states among patients with obesity receiving care in community health centers (CHCs) which provide health care to underserved patients.

Study Design: Retrospective observational cohort study.

Setting: Electronic health record data from the ADVANCE (Advancing Data Value Across a National Community Health Center) clinical research network, during years 2012–2017.

Population Studied: Patients from 346 CHCs age 19-64 with a body mass index of ≥ 30 kg/m2 during the pre-ACA period (n=34,027).

Outcome measures: Proportion of patients with weight loss >5% (WL5+) from pre- to post-ACA. Medicaid expansion status (expansion vs. non-expansion states) stratified by pattern of insurance (uninsured, continuously insured, newly insured, discontinuously insured) and race and ethnicity.

Results: The proportion of patients with WL5+ for newly insured patients was greater in expansion (26%) than non-expansion states (20%) (χ2=9.75, p=0.002). Among newly insured patients, Hispanic (22%) and Black (29%) patients residing in expansion states, had larger proportion of patients with WL5+ than those in non-expansion states (20% and 18%, respectively). No differences were observed among non-Hispanic White patients (expansion 28% vs non-expansion 27%).

Conclusions: The findings suggest greater improvement in weight management among patients residing in expansion states than those in non-expansion states, especially among racial and ethnic minorities receiving care in CHCs.