Medicaid Pocket Primer

Kaiser Health News has released a Medicaid Pocket Primer. The Primer succinctly explains what is Medicaid, its structure, those covered, services, the impact of the ACA, how beneficiaries access care, the program’s impact on beneficiaries’ ability to get care, its costs, and financing.  The conclusion to the primer explains

Medicaid provides comprehensive coverage and financial protection for millions of Americans, most of whom are in working families. Despite their low income, Medicaid enrollees experience rates of access to care comparable to those among people with private coverage. In addition to acute health care, Medicaid covers costly long-term care for millions of seniors and people of all ages with disabilities, in both nursing homes and the community. Medicaid funding is a major source of support for hospitals and physicians, nursing homes, and jobs in the health care sector. Finally, the guarantee of federal matching funds on an open-ended basis permits Medicaid to operate as safety net when economic shifts and other dynamics cause coverage needs to grow. Because proposals to restructure the Medicaid program could have significant consequences for enrollees and the health care system, the potential implications of such proposals warrant careful consideration.

A pdf of the primer is available here.