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Spending on Medicaid State Directed Payments Before New Limits Take Effect

Forty states and DC currently receive $93 billion in annual federal Medicaid spending through state directed payments (SDPs) and may be at risk due to forthcoming limits on these payments, according to new KFF estimates. Annual federal spending on SDPs is highest in California (an estimated $10.6 billion)—followed by Texas ($6.3 billion), North Carolina ($5.2 billion), and Illinois ($5.1 billion).

Forthcoming Policy Changes to Medicaid State Directed Payments

Changes to Medicaid State Directed Payments

The 2025 reconciliation law cut federal Medicaid spending by an estimated $911 billion from 2025 through 2034, some of which stems from new restrictions on Medicaid state directed payments (SDPs) for hospital and other health care services. This issue brief describes SDPs and forthcoming policy changes stemming from the 2025 law and the proposed regulation to implement those requirements and make other changes.

Medicaid Work RequiremEnts

Tracking the 2025 Reconciliation Law’s Medicaid Work Requirements: Data and Policies

To implement Medicaid work requirements, states will need to make important policy and operational decisions, implement needed system upgrades or changes, develop new outreach and education strategies, and hire and train staff, all within a relatively short timeframe. The information tracked here can serve as a resource to understand Medicaid work requirements and state options, gauge readiness, and track implementation of the requirements.

understanding medicaid

Medicaid Financing

Medicaid represents $1 out of every $5 spent on health care in the U.S. and is the major source of financing for states to provide health coverage and long-term care. This brief examines key questions about Medicaid financing and how it works.

Medicaid Program Integrity

This brief explains what is known about improper payments and fraud and abuse in Medicaid and describes ongoing state and federal actions to address program integrity.

Medicaid and Provider Taxes

All states except Alaska cover some state Medicaid costs with taxes on health care providers. This brief uses data from KFF’s 2024-2025 survey of Medicaid directors to describe current practices and the federal rules governing them.

Medicaid and Hospitals

Absorbing reductions in Medicaid spending could be challenging for hospitals, particularly for those that are financially vulnerable. This brief provides data on the reach of Medicaid across hospitals, patients, and charity care.

Medicaid Home Care

This issue brief provides an overview of what Medicaid home care (also known as “home- and community-based services”) is, who is covered, and what services were available in 2025.

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  • Kaiser Family Foundation/Washington Post Partnership Survey Probes Experiences and Views of Rural Americans

    News Release

    Jobs Are Major Concern for Rural Residents: Two Thirds Rate Local Job Market as Fair or Poor, and Most Would Encourage Young People to Leave for Opportunities Elsewhere A new partnership survey of rural and small town America conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation and The Washington Post gauges the views and experiences of people living in these communities and how they compare to those of urban and suburban residents. The survey finds that while…

  • What’s at Stake with ACA Repeal?

    Interactive

    This interactive includes a map and tables that highlight the increases in health insurance coverage through Medicaid and the Marketplaces as well as the increased federal funding that resulted from the implementation of the ACA.

  • Next Steps for CHIP: What is at Stake for Children?

    Fact Sheet

    The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is an important complement to Medicaid, covering 8.4 million children with family incomes above Medicaid eligibility limits who often lack access to affordable private coverage. Following are key facts that highlight what is at stake for children if there is a failure to extend CHIP funding beyond September 2017 and based on changes proposed in the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would fundamentally restructure Medicaid by capping federal…

  • Factors Affecting States’ Ability to Respond to Federal Medicaid Cuts and Caps: Which States Are Most At Risk?

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief examines the factors that could affect states’ ability to cope with reductions in federal Medicaid funding of the sort proposed in the House-passed American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would eliminate enhanced federal matching funds for the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion and convert Medicaid to a per capita cap or block grant system of financing.

  • Medicaid’s Role for Seniors

    Other Post

    This infographic highlights Medicaid’s role for seniors. It includes information about the senior population and highlights Medicaid’s role in increasing access to and financing treatment, particularly for long-term care. It also discusses the potential impact of proposals to limit federal Medicaid financing.

  • 5 Million More Older Americans Would Become Uninsured under the House GOP Health Bill, and Many with Coverage Would Pay Steep Increases in Premiums 

    News Release

    As a group, older Americans are likely to see some of the biggest changes in their health insurance under the House-passed American Health Care Act (AHCA). The Congressional Budget Office projects that the number of 50- to 64-year-olds who are uninsured would rise to 10 million in 2026, about 5.1 million more than the number who would be uninsured under current law. Many of those who do have coverage would see steep increases in premiums…

  • What’s Really At Stake In the Medicaid Spending Debate

    From Drew Altman

    In this Axios column, Drew Altman highlights that the federal debate about the American Health Care Act’s Medicaid spending reductions will ultimately be a debate about every state’s general budget spending priorities, as states discuss whether to offset reductions in federal revenues with some combination of cuts to their Medicaid programs, increased taxes, and cuts to spending in other areas.

  • The Effects of Premiums and Cost Sharing on Low-Income Populations: Updated Review of Research Findings

    Issue Brief

    This brief reviews research from 65 papers published between 2000 and March 2017 on the effects of premiums and cost sharing on low-income populations in Medicaid and CHIP. This research has primarily focused on how premiums and cost sharing affect coverage and access to and use of care; some studies also have examined effects on safety net providers and state savings.