Poverty
Medicaid Enrollment Still Rising
Medicaid enrollment rose 10.9 percent from February to September in the 36 states for which we have data, as millions lost their jobs or suffered sharp income losses due to the COVID-19 recession. If we extrapolate these increases nationwide, it would mean about 7 million more people enrolled in Medicaid — and likely more, given continued increases in October in states with available data.
As Relief Talks Resume, Don’t Forget Fiscal Aid
The fact that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicates he’s now interested in a new COVID-19 relief package is welcome news, particularly if it leads to substantial new federal fiscal aid to help states, localities, tribal nations, and U.S. territories address their massive budget shortfalls.
The Many Risks of the ACA Repeal Lawsuit — a Rundown
The Trump Administration and 18 state attorneys general are supporting a lawsuit that seeks to strike down the Affordable Care Act (ACA). If the lawsuit were to succeed, more than 21 million people would lose health insurance, recent Urban Institute estimates show.
Arizona Voters Improved State’s Tax Code, Advanced Critical Funding for Schools
Pandemic’s Impact on State Revenues Less Than Earlier Expected But Still Severe
Why You Should Visit HealthCare.gov, Starting November 1
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Commentary: Growing Evidence Shows Need for Stronger Rules for Short-Term Health Plans
States Must Improve Finances in Antiracist Response to COVID-19
To achieve an antiracist and inclusive economic recovery from COVID-19’s ravaging of jobs and state budgets, states must fill their revenue shortfalls in equitable ways while building a foundation to grow thriving, inclusive communities.
Family Cash Assistance Programs Marked by Historical Racism, Especially in South
Low benefits in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program are rooted in historical racism, especially in the South, where cash assistance has been consistently weaker since policymakers created TANF’s predecessor nearly a century ago. The result is now a program that does not cover the basic needs of low-income families during times of joblessness, illness, or disability.
Health Insurance Coverage Losses Since 2016 Widespread
The number and share of Americans without health insurance coverage rose for the third straight year in 2019, recent American Community Survey (ACS) data show, despite three years of strong economic growth and falling unemployment. This follows six straight years of health coverage gains, with the uninsured rate falling from 15.5 percent in 2010 to a historic low of 8.6 percent in 2016 as the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) major coverage expansions took effect.
4 in 10 Children Live in a Household Struggling to Afford Basics
More than 4 in 10 children live in households that struggle to meet usual household expenses, our analysis of Census Bureau data released today finds. Along with other data showing that hardship has significantly worsened due to COVID-19 and the recession that it spurred, the figures underscore the need for policymakers to agree on a strong, bipartisan economic relief package.
Medicaid Expansion Has Helped Narrow Racial Disparities in Health Coverage and Access to Care
The Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Medicaid expansion has helped narrow longstanding disparities in health coverage and access to care for people of color, and preliminary evidence suggests it is also improving their health outcomes. The 36 states (plus the District of Columbia) that have implemented expansion have made the greatest progress in increasing health coverage since the ACA’s major coverage provisions took effect in 2014, and these states have narrowed the gaps in uninsured rates between Black and Hispanic people and white people far more than states that haven’t expanded.
ACA Repeal Lawsuit Threatens Medicaid Expansion Coverage for Millions
Medicaid Expansion Improves Postpartum Coverage, Access to Care
The Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) Medicaid expansion has extended health coverage to millions of women, and at least 2.2 million more uninsured women could gain coverage if the 14 states that haven’t yet implemented the expansion did so. That would improve coverage and access to care for people who have recently given birth, likely improving health outcomes, research shows.
Federal Plan to End Homelessness Rejects Proven Strategies, Won’t Meet Rising Need
The new federal strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness, released yesterday by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), deviates in significant and disappointing ways from previous Obama and Trump Administration plans.
Court Decision Against Trump Rule Preserves SNAP for 700,000 Jobless
Sunday’s federal court decision striking down a Trump Administration rule that would have eliminated SNAP (food stamps) for 700,000 low-income jobless workers means that the punitive, ill-conceived rule — already temporarily suspended due to the pandemic — can’t take effect even when the public health emergency ends.
Expanding Medicaid for Parents Improves Coverage and Health for Both Parents and Children
Uncompensated Care Costs Well Down in ACA Medicaid Expansion States
Hospitals’ uncompensated health care costs, which fell significantly as the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) major coverage expansions took effect, rose slightly in 2017 but remained well below their 2013 level, according to the latest data from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission — especially in states that adopted the ACA’s Medicaid expansion to low-income adults.