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Over 9 million elderly Americans and younger persons with disabilities are jointly enrolled in the Medicaid and Medicare programs.  These “dual eligibles” receive coverage for most medical services from Medicare, and they also receive Medicaid assistance for Medicare premiums and cost-sharing and coverage of benefits not offered under Medicare (such…

The economic downturn has strained family finances and prompted some Americans to cut back on medications and forgo preventive care and visits to the doctor. At the same time, the downturn has triggered declines in tax revenue that inhibit states’ ability to meet rising Medicaid program costs as enrollment spikes…

Most Texans Don’t Know their State has the Nation’s Highest Uninsured Rate Texans’ top health care priorities for the state revolve around making health care and prescription drugs more affordable, reducing maternal mortality and increasing access to health insurance coverage, finds a new statewide Kaiser Family Foundation/Episcopal Health Foundation survey…

The federal government recently released draft regulations that address the benefits, market rules, and rating practices for nongroup coverage. Before reform, the nongroup market was widely acknowledged to be broken, with restricted access, limited benefits, high administrative costs, and frequent and large premium increases subject to inadequate oversight. Recent requests for…

States Face New Budget and Workforce Challenges As Temporary Federal Aid Nears End And Health Reform Planning Heats Up WASHINGTON, D.C. – Due to the nation’s deep recession, states experienced rapid growth in their Medicaid enrollment and spending last year and expect additional growth, though at a slower pace, in fiscal…

This analysis estimates that Americans currently buying insurance on the individual market would receive $2700 in subsidies (as tax credits) in 2014 under Obamacare. Tax credits are available for qualifying people buying insurance through the new health care marketplaces, or exchanges.

California’s Uninsured Struggle With Costs and Access And Say They Want Insurance, But Most Have Heard Little About The Affordable Care Act, And Many Who Are Likely To Be Eligible For Medi-Cal or Exchange Subsidies Don’t Know It Many Undocumented Immigrants in CA Think They Will Get Coverage Through the…

This Pulling It Together column is the fourth in my new series. All four so far have dealt with different dimensions of health reform. This time I write about one of my favorite topics, the states. As a former head of an umbrella health and social services agency in a…

New 50-State Survey Illustrates Key Role of CHIP Reauthorization and the Federal Stimulus Law in Safeguarding Coverage    WASHINGTON  – Despite the deep recession, most states have managed to safeguard and, in some cases, expand health coverage for children and parents in their Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs in…

With the new Medicare prescription drug benefit available as of January 1, 2006, over 6 million low-income seniors and people with disabilities who are enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare—also known as dual eligibles—have been transitioned from Medicaid drug coverage to new Medicare drug plans. While there are many policy…