CHIP
is a federal-state partnership program that provides health coverage options for children whose families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford marketplace or other coverage. To learn more about how CHIP serves children in each state, read these https://ccf.georgetown.edu/2017/09/14/ccf-aap-chip-state-snapshots/.
The CARES Act: A Missed Opportunity to Help State Medicaid and CHIP Programs Protect People and Public Health
Today (March 27) the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, was approved by the House of Representatives by a voice vote after clearing the Senate by 97-0. It is now on its way to the President’s desk to be signed into law. This is the third Congressional response (to date) to the COVID-19 […]
Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Impact on Pregnant Women Covered by Medicaid and CHIP
As we continue to unpack the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, we thought we’d take a closer look at how the bill will impact pregnant women covered by Medicaid and CHIP. First, some important background. Eligibility. Medicaid and CHIP offer multiple coverage pathways for pregnant women, including mandatory and optional coverage groups. Medicaid requires coverage […]
Medicaid Disaster Relief SPA Template Suggests Positive Steps States Can Take During the COVID-19 Pandemic
CMS has created a helpful template to make it easier for states to make temporary changes to their Medicaid State Plans during the COVID-19 National Emergency. For most strategies, states need only check off options on the template or, in some cases, provide brief descriptions of the groups or populations affected by the change. The […]
Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility, Enrollment, and Cost Sharing Policies as of January 2020: Findings from a 50-State Survey
Introduction As the COVID-19 pandemic expands, needs for health insurance coverage through Medicaid and CHIP will increase for people who get sick and who lose private coverage due to the declining economy. Increasing enrollment for the 6.7 million uninsured individuals who are eligible for Medicaid and facilitating enrollment for the growing numbers of individuals who will […]
CMS Guidance Clarifies that Families First COVID-19 Response Bill’s FMAP Increase Will Benefit CHIP Too
On March 24, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued guidance related to the temporary increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) included in the Families First COVID-19 response legislation (P.L. 116-127). As we have explained, Families First would increase the FMAP by 6.2 percentage points for all states and territories starting […]
CHIP and COVID-19 Response
Yesterday, I blogged about my favorite provision in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act that requires states to freeze disenrollment in Medicaid through the duration of the public health emergency in order to receive the 6.2 percentage point bump in the state’s regular federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP). Sadly, the disenrollment freeze does not apply […]