Medicaid:  An Overview of Spending on “Mandatory” vs. “Optional” Populations and Services

Medicaid: An Overview of Spending on “Mandatory” vs. “Optional” Populations and Services

This issue brief provides an overview of Medicaid’s optional beneficiaries and services. The brief demonstrates that although “optional” populations account for only 29 percent of Medicaid enrollment, 60 percent of all Medicaid expenditures for both “mandatory” and “optional” populations are “optional,” and the majority of these (86 percent) pay for services provided to the elderly and disabled.

Issue Paper (.pdf)