Federally-Facilitated Exchanges and the Continuum of State Options

Examines the features in eligibility, enrollment, plan management, consumer assistance, and financial management of three health insurance exchange models: state-based, federally facilitated, and partnership exchanges. Considers implications for states

Medicaid's Role in the Health Benefits Exchange: A Road Map for States

Examines issues for integrating Medicaid into the administration, operation, and coverage continuum of insurance exchanges. Discusses eligibility, enrollment, and outreach; contracting, standards, and requirements; benefits design; and infrastructure

A Light Unseen?

(Excerpt) A Light Unseen is an incredibly important work of scholarship that has given me an opportunity to be introspective, to give order to what perhaps has been too intuitive, and to be inspired to think about how to better define, pursue, and measure progress in achieving the mission of being a Catholic law school

A Focus on Health Care: Five Key Priorities for the Next Administration

In early 2022, anticipating the election of a new governor and slate of legislative leaders, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation in partnership with Manatt Health solicited perspectives on health reform priorities from a broad and diverse group of health care stakeholders, including consumer, provider, health plan, business, and labor representatives. This report synthesizes the findings from these stakeholder interviews, describing five health care priorities for the new governor and legislative leaders to immediately pursue: 1) addressing systemic racism and inequities in health; 2) ensuring consumer affordability of health care; 3) confronting the mental health crisis for children and youth; 4) improving the affordability of and access to long-term services and supports (LTSS); and 5) solving severe health care workforce shortages, particularly in the paraprofessional LTSS and behavioral health workforce

HHS Proposed Rules on Exchange Implementation Requirements

Highlights provisions of the new regulations and commentary on state health insurance exchanges that clarify or amplify the 2010 healthcare reform or offer insight into federal guidance or consensus on their establishment, functions, and other issues

Creating a Robust, Diverse, and Resilient Behavioral Health Workforce in Massachusetts

The behavioral health workforce in Massachusetts is in crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the prevalence of behavioral health issues and demand for services, exposing and aggravating the vulnerabilities of Massachusetts' behavioral health workforce and delivery system. Health care, including behavioral health care, has been among the industries hardest hit by the "Great Resignation," exacerbating workforce shortages that predated the pandemic. These dynamics fuel an urgent call to action for Massachusetts to grow and support a workforce that can meet the pressing demand for behavioral health care in the Commonwealth. Informed by a literature review, the development of an inventory of promising models nationwide, and interviews with local and national stakeholders and experts, this report outlines seven concrete recommendations to expand Massachusetts' behavioral health workforce, increase its diversity, maximize its potential to meet the needs of all people in the Commonwealth, and strengthen its resilience

Supporting Health Equity and Affordable Health Coverage for Immigrant Populations: CHIP Coverage Option for Pregnant Immigrants and their Children

Access to affordable health coverage and healthcare is critical for pregnant individuals and translates to better outcomes for their children. Immigrants who are subject to Medicaid's five-year bar or who are undocumented are less likely than U.S. citizens or those with a legal status to have health coverage, including adequate prenatal care, in part due to more limited interactions with the healthcare system as a result of previous public charge and other exclusionary immigration policies. Healthcare for all immigrants is imperative to advancing health equity and reducing disparities between immigrant and U.S. born individuals.Under federal regulations, states may provide pregnancy-related care through the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) state plan to targeted low-income children from conception to birth (the so called "unborn child" option). This option–referred to in this brief as the CHIP coverage option for pregnant immigrants and their children–enables states to provide prenatal, labor and delivery, and postpartum services to pregnant individuals, regardless of immigration status. As of January 2021, approximately one-third of states had pursued this coverage mechanism, meaning many more states could still elect to draw down available federal funding to strengthen access to care for their pregnant residents and prioritize the health of children who will become U.S. citizens at birth. This issue brief–the second in a series, "Supporting Health Equity and Affordable Health Coverage for Immigrant Populations"–offers considerations for policymakers around the CHIP coverage option for pregnant immigrants and their children, regardless of immigration status