In a first, Maryland offers health insurance enrollment on tax forms

Maryland residents will now be the first in the nation to see if they qualify for low-cost health insurance plans when they file their taxes. A new law will allow Maryland’s health care exchange to automatically enroll into Medicaid those who are eligible for the program and don’t have insurance at the time of filing taxes — which residents will indicate by checking a box on their form. Those who fit the criteria can put the $695 fine for being uninsured toward enrollment in the new program, while others will be referred to private plans. Some estimates say that some 360,000 Marylanders are uninsured, about half of whom may be eligible for Medicaid. With the new law, the state’s uninsured rate is expected to drop by around 2%.