Medicaid

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Medicaid work requirements

Medicaid and the Road Ahead: Spending Cuts, Work Requirements and What’s Next for States, Providers and Families

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Passed last year, President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act made significant changes to Medicaid—the primary insurance provider for health and long-term care for people with low incomes. These changes are expected to lead to coverage loss for many current enrollees and will reduce funding for Medicaid, placing new financial pressures on states and health care providers. On July 23, KFF and States Newsroom hosted an event focused on the impacts of work requirements and other federal policy changes on states, health care systems, and people.

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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  • With Medicare and Medicaid Getting High Marks from the Public and Beneficiaries, Majorities Favor Status Quo over Major Structural Changes Such As Premium Supports or Block Grants

    News Release

    Among Medicare Changes, Strongest and Broadest Support Is for Negotiating Drug Prices People With Medicare, Medicaid and Employer Plans Give Their Coverage Similar Ratings, But Some Report Affordability and Physician Access Problems Fifty years after President Lyndon Johnson signed the law creating the Medicare and Medicaid programs, a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll finds a majority of the public and the vast majority of program beneficiaries view the two programs positively. Likely as a result,…

  • California’s Previously Uninsured After The ACA’s Second Open Enrollment Period

    Report

    The Kaiser Family Foundation California Longitudinal Panel Survey is a series of surveys that, over time, tracks the experiences and views of a representative, randomly selected sample of Californians who were uninsured prior to the major coverage expansions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The initial baseline survey was conducted with a representative sample of 2,001 nonelderly uninsured Californian adults in summer 2013, prior to the ACA’s initial open enrollment period. The second survey in…

  • Medicaid Expansion Waivers: What Will We Learn?

    Issue Brief

    Section 1115 waivers authorize research and demonstration projects that, in the view of the Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, further the purposes of the Medicaid program. The ACA implemented new requirements for these waivers, including that states must have a publicly available, approved evaluation strategy. This brief examines some of the major research questions and hypotheses relevant to the federal and state evaluations of Medicaid expansion Section 1115 waivers and explores key challenges that…

  • The Opioid Epidemic and Medicaid’s Role in Facilitating Access to Treatment

    Issue Brief

    This brief describes nonelderly adults with opioid use disorder, including their demographic characteristics and insurance status, and compares utilization of treatment services among those with Medicaid to those with other types of coverage. It also describes Medicaid financing for opioid treatment and the ways in which Medicaid promotes access to treatment for enrollees with OUD.

  • What Initiatives Are States Considering To Control Prescription Drug Costs in Medicaid?

    News Release

    Rising Medicaid spending on prescription drugs has prompted many states to look for new ways to control such costs. Although drug spending increased more slowly in 2016 than in the previous two years, and although such expenditures constitute only six percent of all Medicaid spending (compared to 10% of national health spending), the high cost of specialty drugs continues to be a particular concern among Medicaid policy directors. A new issue brief from the Kaiser…

  • Medicaid’s Role for Children with Special Health Care Needs: A Look at Eligibility, Services, and Spending

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief describes the role that Medicaid plays for children with special health care needs. It explains common eligibility pathways, covered services, and program spending for these children. The Appendix includes 50-state data on the number of children with special health care needs covered by Medicaid/CHIP. A companion brief compares key characteristics of Medicaid/CHIP children with special health care needs to those covered by private insurance.

  • One Year after the Storms: Recovery and Health Care in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

    Issue Brief

    One year after Hurricanes Irma and Maria made landfall, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) are still feeling the storms’ effects. Drawing on key stakeholder interviews and public reports, this brief provides an overview of recovery status and preparation efforts for the current hurricane season one year after the storms, with a focus on the territories’ health care systems.