Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

KFF estimates that enrollment in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) will have grown by 23.3 million enrollees, to nearly 95 million, by the end of March, when the federal continuous enrollment provision expires. On Thursday, March 16, 2023, KFF hosted an hour-long web briefing focused on how state Medicaid programs are approaching this unwinding of the continuous enrollment provision. States’ existing enrollment and renewal procedures and their differing approaches to the unwinding will have major impacts on Medicaid enrollees, state spending, and broader health coverage trends.

As some policymakers in Washington are pushing to reduce the federal deficit and debt, a new KFF resource provides a concise explanation of federal spending for domestic and global health programs and services, which could be part of any conversation about curbing federal spending. Federal spending on health programs and…

This brief uses pre-pandemic data from the 2016-2019 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) to examine the extent to which people enroll in and retain other coverage during the 12 months following disenrollment from Medicaid/CHIP.

Exposure to lead can seriously harm a child’s health, including damage to the brain and nervous system, slowed growth and development, learning and behavior problems, and hearing and speech problems. The effects of lead on the nervous system can cause lower IQ, decreased ability to pay attention, and under performance in school.

This brief examines typical enrollment patterns for Medicaid and CHIP and uses 2018 Medicaid claims data to gain insight into the effects of the continuous enrollment requirements by eligibility group. Roughly 2% of Medicaid enrollees come on or leave the program in an average month, although there is variation across eligibility groups. A policy to require continuous enrollment would result in sharp reductions in monthly disenrollment rates and would also reduce monthly enrollment rates due to reductions in churn.

A summary of 10 of the major health coverage and financing provisions of the current Build Back Better Act, with discussion of the potential implications for people and the federal budget.

This data note discusses changes in the number of applications for Medicaid/CHIP coverage during the coronavirus pandemic. Although enrollment in Medicaid/CHIP has increased steadily by more than 6 million individuals (9%) from February to September 2020, the total number of Medicaid/CHIP applications has decreased by more than 150,000 (-6%) in the same time period. The decline in applications might on the surface suggest that fewer people are applying for coverage even in the face of large job and income losses, but data limitations – in particular, the fact that application statistics do not distinguish between new signups and renewals – make it difficult to draw any clear conclusions.

Following enrollment gains since the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and CHIP enrollment declined in 36 states, by 1.9 million nationwide, between December 2017 and July 2019.

This fact sheet provides analysis of this recent enrollment decrease and discusses potential implications for coverage rates. It is based on Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Performance Indicator Project Data.

This issue brief compares the demographics, health status, access to care, and coverage affordability of Medicaid/CHIP children with special health care needs to those with private insurance and those who are uninsured. Medicaid plays a key role for children with special health care needs by making coverage affordable and covering services that private coverage typically does not. Consequently, legislative proposals that would cap and reduce federal Medicaid funding may pose a particular risk to children with special health care needs and their providers. A companion brief describes Medicaid’s role for children with special health care needs.