Health Policy Connection

Health Policy  /  Health Insurance Coverage  /  Health Care Coverage Current Topics

Health Care Coverage Current Topics

Easier Interaction Between Medicaid and the Exchanges
As policymakers wrestle with integrating new health insurance exchanges, Medicaid, and the ongoing challenge of offering access to seamless coverage, RWJF highlights the following resources on these topics:

  • A policy brief from RWJF and the California Endowment recommends the best ways to provide uninterrupted health coverage.
  • An RWJF two-page brief and a report from the National Academy of Social Insurance explore how to integrate exchanges and Medicaid.
  • A report from RWJF's Maximizing Enrollment program offers a road map on exchanges for state policymakers.
  • Authors of these reports discuss these issues in a recent webinar.
The Future of the Individual Mandate
The individual mandate is an integral but controversial part of the Affordable Care Act. A variety of reports examine the mandate and the role its future could play on health insurance coverage and health care costs.
  • A new report from the Urban Institute examines the effect that eliminating the individual mandate would have on health insurance coverage, spending, premiums and uncompensated care.
  • An RWJF two-page brief provides an overview of the individual mandate and explores its effects.
  • A Health Affairs brief explores the past, present, and future of the individual mandate.
Uninsured Residents Affect Insured Neighbors
In areas with high rates of uninsured people, even residents with insurance suffer. Insured, working-age adults report worse access to care and less satisfaction with care.
  • A report from the University of California, Los Angeles, and the RAND Corporation looks at the spillover effects of community uninsurance.
  • A 2009 report from the Institute of Medicine reviews the research evidence on how high rates of uninsurance affect both the insured and the uninsured.
  • A brief from the Urban Institute looks at the specifics of how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will expand health insurance coverage.
  • Fast Fact: An estimated 32 million uninsured Americans will gain coverage under the ACA. View more Fast Facts on health insurance coverage.
50 Million Americans Lack Health Insurance
New estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show the number of uninsured continues to climb and fewer workers are able to obtain insurance through employers.
  • "The ability to afford health insurance has become even more tenuous." Read RWJF's statement on the new numbers.
  • Experts from the Census Bureau and the State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC) held a webinar on the estimates September 23.
  • Read SHADAC's policy brief on how to interpret the four government surveys that track the uninsured.
  • Read RWJF's two-page brief on the link between having health insurance and enjoying the best health outcomes.

Health Insurance Coverage Fast Fact

Uninsured children are 70 percent less likely than insured children to receive medical care for common childhood conditions, such as a sore throat, which means small health problems can grow into bigger ones.
Source:  Mathematica

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