This resource tracks states with approved Section 1115 Medicaid waivers and pending waivers (which include new waiver applications, waiver amendments, and renewals). View approved and pending waivers according to waiver category. Related waiver resources are available by topic at the bottom of the page, as are additional details on each approved and pending waiver.

With President Trump having declared the opioid epidemic a public health emergency, both the House and Senate are advancing legislation to address the crisis. A new issue brief from the Kaiser Family Foundation summarizes current federal legislative proposals related to Medicaid’s role in the opioid epidemic and identifies issues to…

Legislation to address the opioid epidemic is advancing in both the House and Senate. The House has passed several bills related to Medicaid and opioids, culminating in the Substance Use Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act. The Senate Finance Committee has advanced the Helping to End Addiction and Lessen (HEAL) Substance Use Disorders Act, which is expected to be considered by the full Senate later this year. Both the SUPPORT Act and the HEAL Act contain a number of provisions related to Medicaid’s role in helping states provide coverage and services to people who need substance use disorder (SUD) treatment, in addition to Medicare and other health-related provisions.

With the opioid epidemic continuing, state interest in expanding access to substance use disorder (SUD) services remains high. Medicaid financed 21% of SUD services and 25% of mental health services in 2014. Section 1115 waivers related to behavioral health remain the most frequent type of waiver sought and obtained by states, with most requesting authority to use federal Medicaid funds for services provided in “institutions for mental disease” (IMDs). Since Medicaid’s inception, Congress has prohibited states from using Medicaid funds for IMD services for non-elderly adults. This brief provides new data and answers key questions about the Medicaid IMD payment exclusion as waiver activity continues, and Congress considers legislative changes, including a House bill that would restrict IMD SUD services to those with opioid use disorder, excluding those with other SUDs.

As part of the new Kaiser Family Foundation/Episcopal Health Foundation 2018 Texas Health Policy Survey, this brief explores Texans’ views on health policy priorities at both the state and national level. It examines how Texas residents view state spending on health care and how they rank initiatives such as lowering health care costs, reducing maternal mortality, and funding for mental health care. It also explores Texans’ views on the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid, including personal connections to the Medicaid program and support for Medicaid expansion.

States that have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act generally have seen gains in coverage, improvements in access to and affordability of health care, and net fiscal benefits, a growing body of research and data show. At the same time, Medicaid expansion has not diverted coverage from traditional groups…

More than four years after the implementation of the Medicaid expansion included in the Affordable Care Act, debate and controversy around the implications of the expansion continue. Despite a large body of research that shows that the Medicaid expansion results in gains in coverage, improvements in access and financial security, and economic benefits for states and providers, some argue that the Medicaid expansion has broadened the program beyond its original intent diverting spending from the “truly needy”, offers poor quality and limited access to providers, and has increased state costs. New proposals allow states to implement policies never approved before including conditioning Medicaid eligibility on work or community engagement. New complex requirements run counter to the post-ACA movement of Medicaid integration with other health programs and streamlined enrollment processes. This brief examines evidence of the effects of the Medicaid expansion and some changes being implemented through waivers. Many of the findings on the effects of expansion cited in this brief are drawn from the 202 studies included in our comprehensive literature review that includes additional citations on coverage, access, and economic effects of the Medicaid expansion.

This issue brief summarizes findings from 202 studies of the impact of state Medicaid expansions under the ACA published between January 2014 (when the coverage provisions of the ACA went into effect) and February 2018. It includes studies, analyses, and reports published by government, research, and policy organizations using data from 2014 or later. This body of research suggests that the expansion presents an opportunity for gains in coverage, improvements in access and financial security, and economic benefits for states and providers.

Some have said that state choices about whether to adopt the ACA’s Medicaid expansion come at the expense of providing Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS). Since 2002, the Kaiser Family Foundation has surveyed states about their HCBS waiver waiting lists. All states offer at least one HCBS waiver for seniors and people with disabilities today. States choose how many people to serve under these waivers, and their ability to limit enrollment can result in waiting lists when the number of people seeking services exceeds the number of waiver slots. This analysis examines the most recent data available, including HCBS waiver waiting list data for 2015 and 2016. The data do not support a relationship between a state’s Medicaid expansion status, which is primarily financed with federal funds, and changes in its HCBS waiver waiting list.

This 16th annual 50-state survey provides data on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) eligibility, enrollment, renewal and cost sharing policies as of January 2018. It takes stock of how the programs have evolved as the fifth year of implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) begins, discusses policy changes made during 2017, and looks ahead to issues that may affect state policies moving forward. It is based on a survey of state Medicaid and CHIP officials conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. State data are available in Appendix Tables 1-20.