The Last Piece of the Puzzle: Providing High-Quality, Affordable Health Coverage to All Children Through National Health Reform

Provides an overview of the gaps in health coverage for children and outlines elements healthcare reform should include, such as child-specific Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program packages, simplified enrollment procedures, and new funding

A Look at the Private Option in Arkansas

In September 2013, Arkansas became the first state in the nation to receive approval from the federal government for a Section 1115 demonstration waiver to require most adults who are newly eligible for coverage through the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion to enroll in Marketplace plans. The initiative, often referred to as the "private option," has allowed Arkansas to cover close to 220,000 Medicaid beneficiaries with commercial provider networks and strengthen its Marketplace. An additional 25,000 medically frail adults are covered through the state's fee-for-service system, bringing to 245,000 the number of newly eligible adults covered in Arkansas as of June 30, 2015. As a result of this coverage, Arkansas has been able to drive down its uninsured rate and reduce uncompensated care costs. The future of the private option is the source of extensive discussion within Arkansas, and it continues to be watched closely by policymakers within the state and around the country. Drawing on a dozen interviews with state officials, providers, insurance carriers, and advocates, as well as early data on coverage, reduced uncompensated care costs, and other topics, this issue brief provides an initial look at implementation

Implementation Choices for the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009

Synthesizes policy analyses and discussions with experts of provisions in the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act to strengthen outreach and enrollment and improve quality of care. Recommends steps to ensure effective implementation

Holding Steady, Looking Ahead: Annual Findings of a 50-State Survey of Eligibility Rules, Enrollment and Renewal Procedures, and Cost Sharing Practices in Medicaid and CHIP, 2010-2011

Analyzes findings on state trends in maintaining or expanding eligibility for public coverage and improving enrollment and renewal procedures. Highlights the challenges of developing the Web-based eligibility systems required under healthcare reform

Performing Under Pressure: Annual Findings of a 50-State Survey of Eligibility, Enrollment, Renewal, and Cost-Sharing Policies in Medicaid and CHIP, 2011-2012

Analyzes findings on state trends in maintaining or expanding eligibility for public coverage and improving enrollment and renewal procedures. Highlights some states' expansion of Medicaid eligibility and the use of technology to achieve efficiencies

Enabling Sustainable Investment in Social Interventions: A Review of Medicaid Managed Care Rate-Setting Tools

This report explores practical strategies that states can deploy to support Medicaid managed care plans and their network providers in addressing social issues. It is widely recognized that social factors, such as unstable housing and lack of healthy food, have a substantial impact on health outcomes and spending, particularly with respect to lower-income populations. For Medicaid, now dominated by managed care, this raises the question of how states can establish managed care rates to sustain investments in social supports