Understanding The Medicaid And CHIP Maintenance of Eligibility Requirements May 29, 2012 Fact Sheet This fact sheet examines the provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) that require states to maintain eligibility and enrollment standards for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. These maintenance of eligibility (MOE) provisions were designed to keep Medicaid and CHIP coverage stable until coverage expands…
Uniform Coverage Summaries for Consumers October 1, 2011 Issue Brief This brief explains the proposed federal rule that requires private health plans to provide a short, easy-to-read uniform summary of benefits and coverage to all health insurance applicants and enrollees. The rule, which implements a provision in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), is intended to make it simpler for consumers…
Key Issues to Consider for Outreach and Enrollment Efforts under Health Reform February 1, 2012 Issue Brief The Affordable Care Act will significantly expand health coverage opportunities through an expansion in Medicaid and the creation of new health insurance exchanges in 2014. Effective outreach and enrollment efforts will be vital for assuring the expansions translate into increased coverage. Based on a discussion with federal and state officials…
Vermont Health Care Reform Plan December 19, 2007 Fact Sheet On May 25, 2006, Vermont Governor Jim Douglas signed into law comprehensive health care reform legislation. The plan is designed to increase access to affordable health care while reducing cost through quality improvement measures. The plan requires employers to provide or help finance coverage for their workers. For individuals, participation…
Addressing Disparities in Health and Health Care — Issues for Reform May 31, 2008 Event Marsha Lillie-Blanton, Dr.P.H., Kaiser senior advisor on race, ethnicity and health care, testified before the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee about the role of health insurance in reducing disparities in health care and in health status. The testimony is part of an ongoing health reform hearing series. Testimony (.pdf)…
Covering the Uninsured: Options for Reform September 16, 2008 Issue Brief Download PDF Key Facts on the Uninsured In 2007, 45 million nonelderly people in the United States lacked health coverage More than eight in ten uninsured people (81%) come from working families About two-thirds of the nonelderly uninsured are from low-income families (income below 200% of poverty, about $42,400 for…
The Decline in the Uninsured in 2007: Why Did It Happen and Can It Last? September 30, 2008 Issue Brief This policy brief examines the underlying shifts in health insurance coverage in 2007, which resulted in a 1.5 million decrease in the number of uninsured people under age 65, due to increased public coverage. This includes about 300,000 in Massachusetts, which implemented its comprehensive health reform that year. The brief…
The Fraying Link Between Work and Health Insurance: Trends in Employer-Sponsored Insurance for Employees, 2000-2007 November 1, 2008 Report This analysis shows that employer-sponsored coverage began declining after 2000 due to an economic downturn that saw rising unemployment, declining family incomes and more workers moving into temporary work, part-time work and other employment arrangements where health benefits were not provided. Employer-sponsored coverage continued to decline after 2003 despite improvements…
Pulling it Together from Drew Altman: Multiple Agendas for Controlling Health Care Costs January 26, 2009 Perspective In what would be a domestic policy trifecta, we may be headed for interconnected big debates about economic recovery, entitlement programs and health reform. A core issue in the entitlement and health reform debates is the problem of rising health care costs. President Obama, now apparently fully briefed on the…
Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — February 2009 February 1, 2009 Poll Finding The first Kaiser Health Tracking Poll of 2009 finds the public is increasingly worried about the affordability and availability of care, with many postponing or skipping treatments due to cost in the past year and a notable minority forced into serious financial straits due to medical bills. Slightly more than…