Financing

In a Health Affairs blog post,  Joshua M. Wiener and Melissa Romaire of RTI International and MaryBeth Musumeci of the Kaiser Family Foundation examine whether states could successfully cope with substantial reductions in federal Medicaid funding under a per capita cap or block grant system by improving efficiency in the…

Following several years of declining or flat enrollment growth, states expect Medicaid enrollment and spending each to jump by more than 8 percent in fiscal year 2021, chiefly due to a slumping economy amid the pandemic and federal conditions to maintain coverage to access enhanced federal matching funds, according to…

This report provides an in-depth examination of the changes taking place in Medicaid programs across the country. The findings are drawn from the 20th annual budget survey of Medicaid officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted by KFF and Health Management Associates (HMA), in collaboration with the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD). This report focuses on Medicaid policy changes planned for FY 2021, particularly those related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On June 23, 2021, a circuit court decision in Missouri put the state’s expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in limbo. This decision, if upheld, has implications for coverage in the state as well as the availability of federal financing to cover the cost.

This data note analyzes federal Medicaid outlays before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the one year since the onset of the pandemic, federal Medicaid outlays totaled $500.8 billion and grew by 19.5%, compared to 6.3% growth in the one year before the pandemic.

The Build Back Better (BBB) Act proposes reducing disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments by 12.5% starting in federal fiscal year (FFY) 2023 and places limits on Medicaid uncompensated care (UCC) pools for non-expansion states. This policy watch explains what these payments are, what changes have been tied to the ACA, and examines potential implications of changes included in the BBB.

More than 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, state Medicaid programs around the country continue to reshape policy in response to the public health emergency and at the same time advance broader initiatives and priorities, including efforts to address the social determinants of health and health equity, finds a new…

This report provides an in-depth examination of the changes taking place in Medicaid programs across the country. The findings are drawn from the 21st annual budget survey of Medicaid officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia conducted by KFF and Health Management Associates (HMA), in collaboration with the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD). This report highlights policies in place in state Medicaid programs in FY 2021, particularly those related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as policy changes implemented or planned for FY 2022.

Unlike previous recessions in modern history, this past recession was spurred by the spread of a virus (COVID-19), which created a public health crisis with unique health implications. This brief describes the broader impacts of this most recent recession – which lasted from February 2020 to April 2020 — and also explores how trends in Medicaid spending and enrollment differed from past recessions and what that might mean for state Medicaid programs moving forward.

In February 2022, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) and Health Management Associates (HMA) fielded a rapid, mini-survey of Medicaid directors in all 50 states and the District of Columbia as a follow-up to the annual Medicaid Budget Survey conducted in summer 2021. This brief explores Medicaid enrollment and spending growth estimates for FY 2022 and projections for FY 2023, as reported by state Medicaid directors.