Increased CHIP Matching Rates under House-Passed HEROES Act

The House-passed HEROES Act (H.R. 6800) would provide an additional one-year increase to the federal Medicaid matching rate (from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021), on top of the FMAP increase enacted as part of the Families First Act (P.L. 116-127).  As I have explained, the further FMAP increase, in turn, would increase the […]

House HEROES Act Would Also Further Raise CHIP Matching Rate

The temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate enacted as part of the Families First COVID-19 legislation (P.L. 116-127) benefited the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as well.  Because the formula used to calculate each state’s CHIP matching rate is based on the regular FMAP, the Families First FMAP increase resulted […]

HEROES Act Includes Other Provisions Strengthening Medicaid and CHIP

The HEROES Act bill (H.R. 6800), which the House will likely consider Friday, May 13, would provide a critically needed, additional one-year increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) and block the Trump Administration from finalizing the damaging Medicaid Financial Accountability Rule (MFAR) during the duration of the public health emergency.  It also includes […]

House HEROES Act Bill Would Provide Significant Further Support for State Medicaid Programs

As I have previously written, while helpful, the temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) provided by the Families First COVID-19 response legislation (P.L. 116-127) is clearly insufficient to address the sharply higher state Medicaid costs and overall budget deficits states will experience in this health and economic crisis.  That […]

Waive, Suspend, Delay, Eliminate, Forgive CHIP Premiums? Semantics Matter for Families who Need Fiscal Relief from COVID-19 Impacts

As families lose their jobs and employer-sponsored health insurance, eliminating Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) premiums is a great way to provide continuity of coverage for children and fiscal relief for families. But there may be a catch. While some states are submitting state plan amendments to waive collection of premiums or temporarily halt disenrollments […]

Critical Need for Further, Large FMAP Increases to Sustain State Medicaid Programs During Economic Crisis

As part of the Families First COVID-19 legislation, Congress provided a temporary 6.2 percentage point increase in the federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) for the duration of the public health emergency.  The bipartisan National Governors Association and the National Association of Medicaid Directors are both urging Congress to provide further FMAP increases (totaling at least […]