A new fact sheet from the Commonwealth Fund, “Essential Facts About Health Reform Alternatives: Block Granting Medicaid,” makes compelling arguments about the dangers of block granting Medicaid. States would receive a fixed, preset amount of federal funds that would not change if the number of enrollees increase or if the cost of services rise. This differs from the flexible way that Medicaid is currently funded that allows the program to address economic downturns, low-wage workers who do not have access to employer coverage, public health emergencies such as the Zika virus and opioid crisis, and natural disasters.

The figure included in the fact sheet caught my attention. Since 1999, the cost of Medicaid per enrollee has grown much slower than the cost of Medicare and private insurance per enrollee. There are even times when Medicaid’s growth in spending per enrollee has been negative. The authors explain that this is due to cost-containment measures in Medicaid that have kept growth in spending per enrollee low. This is a great reminder of how Medicaid delivers access to health care efficiently.