New on the Web 45 (May 2008)
From the Center for Health Care Strategies: “Medicaid Managed Care for Children in Child Welfare”
From the Commonwealth Fund: “Medicare Part D: How Do Vulnerable Beneficiaries Fare?”, “Universal Mandatory Health Insurance in the Netherlands: A Model for the United States?”
From the Government Accountability Office: “Health Savings Accounts: Participation Grew, and Many HAS-Eligible Plan Enrollees Did Not Open HSAs while Individuals Who Did Had Higher Incomes”
From the Journal of the American Medical Association: “Cost-Related Medication Nonadherence and Spending on Basic Needs Following Implementation of Medicare Part D”
From the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured: “Determining Income Eligibility in Children’s Health Coverage Programs: How States Use Disregards in Children’s Medicaid and SCHIP,” “Medicaid, SCHIP, and Economic Downturn: Policy Challenges and Policy Responses”
From the Kaiser Family Foundation: “How Private Health Coverage Works: A Primer–2008 Update,” “Medicare Prescription Drug Plans in 2008 and Key Changes since 2006: Summary of Findings”
From the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum: “Health Coverage and Access to Care among Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders”
From Mathematica: “The Three E’s: Enrollment, Employment, and Earnings in the Medicaid Buy-In Program, 2006”
From the Urban Institute: “Why Do People Lack Health Insurance?”
From the Center for Health Care Strategies:
Medicaid Managed Care for Children in Child Welfare examines the complex physical and behavioral health care needs and associated costs for children in child welfare. This brief outlines critical opportunities and challenges within Medicaid to better manage care for this high-risk, high-cost population. (April 2008)
From the Commonwealth Fund:
Medicare Part D: How Do Vulnerable Beneficiaries Fare? surveyed counselors, attorneys, program managers, and health professionals about steps that could make Medicare Part D work better for the most vulnerable beneficiaries. For some enrollees, particularly those who must transition from Medicaid to Medicare drug coverage, the new program can be confusing or disruptive and result in delays in getting drugs. The report also suggests certain policy and procedural changes that could enhance program performance. (May 2008)
According to Universal Mandatory Health Insurance in the Netherlands: A Model for the United States?, the Dutch system may be of particular interest to policymakers and advocates in the current health care debate. Two years ago, the Netherlands launched an initiative to provide health care for its entire population. Not a single-payer system, the Dutch approach combines mandatory health insurance with competition among private health insurers. (May 2008)
From Government Accountability Office:
Health Savings Accounts: Participation Grew, and Many HAS-Eligible Plan Enrollees Did Not Open HSAs while Individuals Who Did Had Higher Incomes found that the number of individuals participating in HSA-eligible, high-deductible health plans and HSAs has risen significantly since 2004. Adjusted gross income for HSA enrollees in 2005 was about $139,000, compared to $57,000 for other taxpayers. However, many HSA-eligible plan enrollees did not open an HSA, citing their inability to afford one or a belief that they did not need one. (May 2008)
From the Journal of the American Medical Association:
Cost-Related Medication Nonadherence and Spending on Basic Needs Following Implementation of Medicare Part D presents an analysis of data from a government survey of 24,234 Medicare beneficiaries in 2004, 2005, and 2006. The percentage of seniors who said they skipped medications because of cost declined after Part D took effect in January 2006. However, the sickest beneficiaries still skip prescriptions because they cannot afford them. (April 2008)
From the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured:
Determining Income Eligibility in Children’s Health Coverage Programs: How States Use Disregards in Children’s Medicaid and SCHIP describes the purpose of income “disregards” (which refer to both income that is excluded and expenses that are deducted from a family’s earnings); how disregards enable children in working families to obtain health coverage; the types and amounts of disregards currently used in Medicaid and CHIP; and the implications of prohibiting the application of disregards in determining eligibility for children’s health coverage programs. (May 2008)
Medicaid, SCHIP, and Economic Downturn: Policy Challenges and Policy Responses examines the implications of a recession for health coverage and state programs. It also projects the impact of a one percentage point rise in the national unemployment rate on Medicaid and CHIP and the number of uninsured individuals. The analysis also documents how federal fiscal relief during the last economic downturn of 2003-2004 helped to stabilize Medicaid and helped states avoid deeper budget cuts. (April 2008)
From the Kaiser Family Foundation:
How Private Health Coverage Works: A Primer–2008 Update explains how private health coverage in the U.S. works. It discusses the fundamental aims of private health coverage and sorts out the complicated web of state and federal regulations that govern it. (April 2008)
Medicare Prescription Drug Plans in 2008 and Key Changes Since 2006: Summary of Findings covers topics ranging from premiums and the coverage gap to benefit design, cost-sharing, and the availability of plans for those who receive the low-income subsidy. The analysis found little change in Part D plans since 2006, but it concluded that increases in cost-sharing and utilization management restrictions may keep some beneficiaries from obtaining the drugs they need. (April 2008)
From the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum:
Health Coverage and Access to Care among Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders finds substantial differences in the health care experiences of the subgroups within these minority groups. For instance, Koreans, who tend to work for smaller companies that cannot afford employer-sponsored coverage, are more likely to be uninsured than all subgroups. The fact sheet also explains the implications of the findings and calls for more data to better understand the needs of these populations. (April 2008)
From Mathematica:
The Three E’s: Enrollment, Employment, and Earnings in the Medicaid Buy-In Program, 2006 presents a national profile of the enrollment, employment, and earnings of buy-in participants and investigates the association between participant characteristics, state program features, and employment outcomes. The report notes that the buy-in program continues to be a popular coverage option for states and that enrollment grew nationwide between 2001 and 2006 from 29,398 to 97,491. (April 2008)
From the Urban Institute:
Why Do People Lack Health Insurance? looks at the reasons people are uninsured overall and by key population subgroups (by age, race/ethnicity, health status, and family and employment characteristics). The brief also examines how those reasons have changed over time. (May 2008)
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