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This brief describes 10 key points about the unwinding of the Medicaid continuous enrollment requirement, highlighting data and analyses that can inform the unwinding process as well as recent legislation and guidance issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to help states prepare for the end of the continuous enrollment provision.
The 21st annual survey of state Medicaid and CHIP program officials conducted by KFF and the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families in January 2023 presents a snapshot of actions states are taking to prepare for the lifting of the continuous enrollment provision, as well as key state Medicaid eligibility, enrollment, and renewal policies and procedures in place as of January 2023. The report focuses on policies for children, pregnant individuals, parents, and other…
This report provides an in-depth examination of the changes taking place in Medicaid programs across the country. Report findings are drawn from the annual budget survey of Medicaid officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. This report examines the reforms, policy changes, and initiatives that occurred in FY 2018 and those adopted for implementation for FY 2019 (which began for most states on July 1, 2018). Key areas covered include changes in…
A new brief from KFF (the Kaiser Family Foundation) examines potential changes to “spousal impoverishment” rules in Medicaid that allow married couples to protect a portion of their income and assets should one spouse seek Medicaid coverage for long-term care. A provision of the Affordable Care Act that requires state Medicaid programs to apply such rules to home- and community-based long-term care is set to expire on December 31. That could tip the balance of financial…
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), beginning in 2014 all states will employ streamlined, technology-driven enrollment systems to help eligible people sign up for insurance affordability programs, including Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program and the new health insurance exchange marketplaces. Even with these streamlined systems in place, application assistance will be important for helping to translate the ACA's Medicaid and other coverage expansions into increased coverage. The Kaiser Family Foundation's Commission on Medicaid and…
This brief provides a summary of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) March 23, 2012 final rule to implement the ACA provisions relating to Medicaid eligibility, enrollment simplification and coordination. The rule, which is effective Jan. 1, 2014, lays out procedures for states to implement the Medicaid expansion and the streamlined and integrated eligibility and enrollment system created under the ACA. Achieving this goal will require substantial process and system changes among state…
In November 2018, CMS released new state data on MAGI Medicaid and CHIP application processing time. These data reflect continued progress in reporting of performance indicators that CMS established in 2013 to facilitate data-driven program management and improvement.
This issue brief presents findings on policy decisions related to implementation of Medicaid work requirements. The findings draw on information from the annual survey of state Medicaid and CHIP program officials conducted by KFF and the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families for the 43 states (including DC) that will be required to implement work requirements and from focus groups with officials in eight states: Arizona, Indiana, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington.
This paper examines the impact on enrollment and families of Arizona's Dec. 21, 2009, decision to freeze enrollment in KidsCare, the state's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The CHIP enrollment freeze, enacted in response to recession-driven state budget pressures, saved the state $12.9 million in FY 2011, but has also resulted in more than 100,000 children being placed on a waiting list for coverage and the loss of $41 million in federal matching funds. Issue…
This policy brief describes the Supreme Court's decision on the Affordable Care Act and looks ahead to the implementation of health reform now that questions about the constitutionality of the law have been resolved. Brief (.pdf)
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