The number of Coloradans receiving Medicaid benefits has jumped by more than 9,000 since March and by 72,597 since this time last year, state officials said Friday.
State and county officials say the recession is directly to blame for the spike in people needing help, not just with Medicaid but with food stamps, child care and energy assistance.
Counties across the state say they are struggling to stay on top of new applications.
The number of adults and kids in Colorado receiving Medicaid hit 457,699 on April 30 — the most people since the program’s inception in 1969, state officials said.
That’s enough people to fill the Pepsi Center 24 times, said Joanne Lindsay, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.
Medicaid is a public health insurance program for the poor, covering kids, pregnant women, the elderly and people with disabilities.
Allison Sherry: 303-954-1377 or asherry@denverpost.com
