“The collapse is caused mainly by debt and the economic crisis in Puerto Rico and historic privatization of the health care system there. Our research shows patients are waiting for six to eight months to get an appointment with a specialist. If that’s not a sign of collapse, I don’t know what is,” said Varas-Diaz.
Don’t forget about the gap between qualifying for Medicaid and qualifying for marketplace subsidies. Expanded Medicaid covers that gap, but some states declined the federal money to cover it.