New on the Web 11: July 2002
We've collected information on several new reports and other resources available on the Web that we hope you'll find interesting and useful. Descriptions and links appear below.
Center for Studying Health System Change: "The Insurance Gap and Minority Health Care, 1997-2001"
Child Health Insurance Research Initiative (CHIRI): "SCHIP Disenrollment and State Policies"
Commonwealth Fund: "Family Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Services: A Continuing Source of Financial Insecurity," "Developing a Health Plan Report Card on Quality of Care for Minority Populations"
Community Voices: "Reaching Out: Successful Efforts to Provide Children and Families with Health Care"
Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured: "Reaching Uninsured Children through Medicaid: If You Build It Right, They Will Come," "Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA): Medicaid Issue Update"
Kaiser Family Foundation: "Medicare+Choice Withdrawals: Understanding Key Factors"
National Governors Association: "Enrollment Hits the Web: States Maximize Internet Technology in SCHIP and Medicaid"
NHeLP: "The Provider's Guide to Quality & Culture"
Center for Studying Health System Change
The Insurance Gap and Minority Health Care, 1997-2001 reports that, despite a booming economy and increased national attention being focused on the problem, racial and ethnic disparities failed to improve. Such disparities were particularly pronounced among those who lack health insurance. The author notes that "the gaps between minority groups and whites remain nearly the same as a decade ago." (June 2002)
Child Health Insurance Research Initiative (CHIRI)
Little is known about the extent to which children are leaving SCHIP and how state policies affect disenrollment rates.
SCHIP Disenrollment and State Policiespresents the results of a study that examined the relationship between disenrollment and state policies in four states that together represented where a third of SCHIP enrollees lived at the time of the study. (June 2002)
Commonwealth Fund
Developing a Health Plan Report Card on Quality of Care for Minority Populations presents the results of a study that included eight managed care plans. The authors conclude that, in all but four states, health plans can legally collect data on the race and ethnicity of their members using standard measures of health care quality. Furthermore, health plans should collect data on disparities in the quality of care for racial and ethnic minorities because documenting such disparities is key to eliminating them. (July 2002)
Family Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Services: A Continuing Source of Financial Insecurity examines trends in out-of-pocket spending, the components of that spending, and the characteristics of families with high out-of-pocket costs. The author found that out-of-pocket health care expenses remain a major source of financial insecurity for many families, especially working families with low incomes, Medicare beneficiaries, those with chronic health problems, and families with private health coverage through the individual insurance market. (June 2002)
Community Voices
Reaching Out: Successful Efforts to Provide Children and Families with Health Carepresents a menu of approaches aimed at breaking down barriers to enrolling and retaining "hard-to-reach" populations in Medicaid and SCHIP. It also offers personal stories that exemplify the successes and frustrations such communities face, the public policies that help and hinder their efforts, and policy recommendations geared toward facilitating community-based enrollment in and retention of health coverage. In addition, it includes a list of resources available to community workers and policymakers. (June 2002)
Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured
Reaching Uninsured Children through Medicaid: If You Build It Right, They Will Come examines what it takes to modernize Medicaid and how modernization has increased enrollment in both Medicaid and SCHIP. The report includes tables that present enrollment figures for all 50 states and D.C., examine the relationship of Medicaid to overall enrollment of children, families, and pregnant women, and list the states that have not simplified their enrollment processes. The authors note that one of the current challenges is "to not let barriers creep back into the system as a hidden cost saving mechanism." (June 2002)
Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA): Medicaid Issue Update is a fact sheet that presents key questions and answers regarding TMA as a part of the Medicaid program and its relationship to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), the welfare program. (June 2002)
Kaiser Family Foundation
Medicare+Choice Withdrawals: Understanding Key Factorsexplores the reasons why M+C plans exited from or limited their participation in the program between 1999 and 2001. The report examines factors such as M+C payment levels, local market characteristics, and individual health plan characteristics to draw inferences about the types of plans and markets that have been most adversely affected. (June 2002)
National Governors Association
Many states have tried to make navigating SCHIP as simple as possible; one way they have done this is by using the Internet to improve the enrollment process for SCHIP and Medicaid.
Enrollment Hits the Web: States Maximize Internet Technology in SCHIP and Medicaiddescribes how states have used online enrollment in an attempt to reduce enrollment time and increase access for applicants. This Issue Brief describes online enrollment programs in California, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington. (May 2002)
NHeLP
The Provider's Guide to Quality & Cultureis a new Web site that is a joint project of Management Sciences for Health and the Bureau of Primary Health Care (part of HHS). The site explains cultural competence and provides tools designed to help health care professionals provide culturally appropriate care. The site also contains extensive lists of resources and links for further reading. (June 2002)
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