The 50 state survey of enrollment simplification and renewal procedural reforms, shows that states continue to take steps to transform the Medicaid program from its origins as a welfare-based program into something resembling a more traditional health insurance program.

• Report (.pdf)

>>All 50-State Children’s Health Coverage Reports

This policy brief examines health coverage for low-income parents after the 1996 welfare law broke the historical connection between Medicaid coverage and welfare. Many states have altered their rules and some have expanded coverage for low-income working parents.

• Policy Brief

This report analyzes enrollment data of recent years and draws on state experiences to outline the key strategies that will lead to successful enrollment in public health coverage programs and finds that improving enrollment in Medicaid drives improved overall enrollment into a state s public coverage programs.

The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured highlighted two new reports at the policy briefing, , and released several related publications at the event.

• Reaching Uninsured Children Through Medicaid: If You Build It Right, They Will Come (.pdf)
• Enrolling Children and Families in Health Coverage: The Promise of Doing More (.pdf)
• Medicaid Program Enrollment: Data Update September 2001 (.pdf)
• SCHIP Program Enrollment: December 2001 Update (.pdf)
• Acceleration of Medicaid Spending Reflects Mounting Pressures (.pdf)
• Medicaid Update: What Changes Are States Considering in the Face of Fiscal Pressures?
• View a webcast and transcript of this event

New NPR/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard Kennedy School of Government Survey on Health Care

A new survey by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard s Kennedy School of Government finds that many Americans have real problems when it comes to accessing and paying for health care, and even if they haven’t yet faced a problem, many worry about getting and paying for care in the future. The survey also shows that, while people think helping seniors with the cost of prescription drugs should be a priority, most seniors would not be willing to pay significantly more than they pay now for drug coverage under Medicare.

• Chart Pack

NPR/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard Kennedy School of Government Survey on Health Care

A survey by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard s Kennedy School of Government finds that many Americans have real problems when it comes to accessing and paying for health care, and even if they haven’t yet faced a problem, many worry about getting and paying for care in the future. The survey also shows that, while people think helping seniors with the cost of prescription drugs should be a priority, most seniors would not be willing to pay significantly more than they pay now for drug coverage under Medicare.

• Summary of Findings
• Chart Pack
• Toplines/Survey
• View results and listen to stories about the survey on NPR’s website

New NPR/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard Kennedy School of Government Survey on Health Care

A new survey by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard s Kennedy School of Government finds that many Americans have real problems when it comes to accessing and paying for health care, and even if they haven’t yet faced a problem, many worry about getting and paying for care in the future. The survey also shows that, while people think helping seniors with the cost of prescription drugs should be a priority, most seniors would not be willing to pay significantly more than they pay now for drug coverage under Medicare.

• Summary of Findings

A new survey by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard s Kennedy School of Government finds that many Americans have real problems when it comes to accessing and paying for health care, and even if they haven’t yet faced a problem, many worry about getting and paying for care in the future. The survey also shows that, while people think helping seniors with the cost of prescription drugs should be a priority, most seniors would not be willing to pay significantly more than they pay now for drug coverage under Medicare.

• Toplines/Survey

Sicker and Poorer: The Consequences of Being Uninsured

A new report by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured synthesizes the major findings of the past 25 years of health services research assessing the most important effects of health insurance. The report evaluates thousands of citations and 230 research articles to assess the consequences of being uninsured for health status and economic opportunity and concludes that the weight of this large body of research makes a compelling case that health insurance does lead to improved health and better access to care.

The major findings from the paper include:

• The uninsured receive less preventive care, are diagnosed at more advanced disease stages, and once diagnosed, tend to receive less therapeutic care (drugs and surgical interventions);
• Having health insurance would reduce mortality rates for the uninsured by 10 15 percent; and
• Better health would improve annual earnings by about 10 – 30 percent (depending on measures and specific health condition) and would increase educational attainment.

• Executive Summary
• Full Report
• Briefing Charts

This chartbook provides information on key trends in the health care marketplace including health spending, the structure of the health care marketplace, and health plan and provider relationships. It highlights data on health plan enrollment, premiums, and benefits, and the implications of health market trends for consumers and the safety net.

Chartbook (.pdf)