Nevada Medicaid’s Pediatric Benefits Promote Healthy Development for Children

March 7, 2019

Below is a description of sources used for data reported on the factsheet, “Nevada Medicaid’s Pediatric Benefits Promote Healthy Development for Children,” provided by Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (CCF).

EPSDT Services

Section 1905(r)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act. For a full description of EPSDT coverage, see

  • Department of Health and Human Services, EPSDT – A Guide for States: Coverage in the Medicaid Benefit for Children and Adolescents (June 2014).
  • Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, EPSDT: A Primer, Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (March 2016).

Children’s Health Insurance Coverage (2017)

Georgetown CCF analysis of single-year estimates of summary data from the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS). Children are defined as those under the age of 19. Data on sources of health insurance coverage convey whether a person has coverage at the time of the survey. The ACS is administered throughout the calendar year.

The Census Bureau provides the following categories of coverage for respondents to indicate source of health insurance: current or former employer, purchased directly from an insurance company, Medicare, Medicaid or means-tested (includes CHIP), TRICARE or other military health coverage, VA, Indian Health Service (IHS), or other. People who indicate IHS as their only source of health coverage do not have comprehensive coverage and are considered to be uninsured.

Additional information on methodology is provided in CCF’s annual report on children’s coverage rates.

Births Financed by Medicaid

For 50 states (including D.C.), the percent of newborns in low-income families with Medicaid/CHIP is provided by the 2016 Kaiser Family Foundation Medicaid Budget Survey, which asked states to report the share of births financed by Medicaid in the most recent 12-month period for which data were available. States reported data for different years that ranged from 2010-2016. Additional information about the methodology is provided in Implementing Coverage and Payment Initiatives: Results from a 50-State Medicaid Budget Survey for State Fiscal Years 2016 and 2017.

Low-Income Children with Medicaid/CHIP

Georgetown CCF analysis of single-year estimates of summary data from the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS). Children are defined as those under the age of 19.

Low-income is defined as children under 138 percent of the poverty threshold ($28,180 for a family of three in 2017). Data on poverty levels include only those individuals for whom the poverty status can be determined for the last year. The Census determines an individual’s poverty status by comparing that person’s income in the last 12 months to poverty thresholds that account for family size and composition, as well as various types of income.

Additional information on methodology is provided in CCF’s annual report on children’s coverage rates.

Young Children with Medicaid/CHIP

Georgetown CCF analysis of single-year estimates of summary data from the 2016 American Community Survey (ACS). Young is defined as children under six years old. Coverage includes children with Medicaid or other public coverage alone or in combination with another health coverage source.

Children with Special Health Care Needs with Public Coverage

Musumeci, MaryBeth and Julia Foutz. “Medicaid’s Role for Children with Special Health Care Needs: A Look at Eligibility, Services, and Spending” Kaiser Family Foundation, (February 2018).

Children in Foster Care with Medicaid/CHIP

Urban Institute analysis of Medicaid Statistical Information System (MSIS) data. In 2001, states provided Medicaid coverage to approximately 870,000 foster care children for $3.8 billion. “All foster children for whom states receive federal reimbursement for foster care expenses (under title IV-E of the Social Security Act) are categorically eligible for Medicaid. States have the option to extend Medicaid benefits to non-IV-E eligible foster children, and all states do. In addition, children receiving federally reimbursed adoption subsidies are categorically eligible for Medicaid. All states but one have also chosen to cover adopted children supported by state-funded subsidies in their Medicaid programs. Thus, virtually all children in foster care and in adoptive placements are eligible for Medicaid.”

Name of Medicaid Program

Healthcare.gov, “Medicaid and CHIP program names in your state”. 

Name of CHIP Program

Kaiser Family Foundation, “CHIP Program Name and Type,” State Health Facts (as of May 1, 2015).

Percent of Medicaid/CHIP Enrollees that are Children

Monthly enrollment data is preliminary and may be updated in subsequent CMS Eligibility and Enrollment Reports. Additional information about methodology, including state-by-state table notes, are available here: March 2018 Medicaid and CHIP Enrollment Data Highlights.

Long-Term Benefits of Medicaid for Children

  1. Wagnerman, A, Chester and J. Alker, Medicaid is a smart investment in children, Georgetown Center for Children and Families (March 2017).

Percent of children enrolled in Medicaid receiving 6 or more well-child visits in the first 15 months of life; Percent of children enrolled in Medicaid received recommended immunizations by age 2

The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA) included provisions to strengthen the quality of care provided to and health outcomes of children in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). CMS annually releases information on state progress in reporting the Child Core Set measures and assesses state-specific performance for measures that are reported by at least 25 states and which met internal standards of data quality. In 2017, the percent of children enrolled in Medicaid receiving 6 or more well-child visits in the first 15 months of life and the percent of children enrolled in Medicaid received recommended immunizations by age 2 were included in the Child Core Set.

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