The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured recently released a new report summarizing the evidence on access to care, health outcomes, and quality of care in Medicaid. It comes as states continue to debate whether or not to accept the federal funds to cover more uninsured people through Medicaid. Two of the report’s findings include:

• Having Medicaid is much better than being uninsured. Medicaid beneficiaries fare better than the uninsured on access to care, utilization and unmet need. Medicaid nearly eliminated catastrophic out-of-pocket spending for adults. Broader Medicaid eligibility at the state level is associated with significant reductions in child and adult mortality. Also, children on Medicaid are more likely to have a usual source of care and to receive well-child care compared to children who are uninsured.
• Medicaid beneficiaries and the privately insured have comparable access to preventive and primary care. When health, demographic, and socioeconomic differences were controlled for, Medicaid adults did as well or better than privately insured adults on having a usual source of care, getting a routine check-up, and having a general doctor visit or specialist visit. Children are similarly likely to have had a primary care visit in the past year whether they are enrolled in public or private insurance. If Medicaid beneficiaries had private insurance instead, research estimates that their out-of-pocket spending, on average, would increase more than 3 times.

The research on Medicaid shows that Medicaid is highly effective. Medicaid coverage increase people’s likelihood of having a usual source of care and decreases financial barriers to access to health care.