Issue Briefs | May 14, 2018

Medicaid Buy-In: State Options, Design Considerations and Section 1332 Waiver Implications

Patricia Boozang, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure and Ashley Traube, Manatt Health

States continue to identify and pursue strategies to further reduce the number of uninsured, to make coverage more affordable for consumers and to improve access to care. Several proposals have been introduced at both the federal and state levels that would permit people above Medicaid eligibility levels to “buy in” to Medicaid or would leverage the Medicaid program to strengthen coverage across the individual market and Medicaid. This issue brief presents two possible models for a Medicaid buy-in program for states, and details the design considerations and authorities needed to implement each model.

The State Health Policy Highlight, Medicaid Buy-In: What Is It? And How Can It Be Useful to States? provides an overview of the concept of Medicaid buy-in and outlines the issues states can solve for by implementing a Medicaid buy-in program.

State Health and Value Strategies hosted a companion webinar, Medicaid Buy-in: State Options and Design Considerations based on the issue brief that provided an overview on Medicaid buy-in and explored the two models profiled in the issue brief.


Expert Perspectives

June 16, 2022

Leveraging Section 1902(e)(14) Waiver Authority Amid Unwinding

The unwinding related section 1902(e)(14) strategies newly available to Medicaid and CHIP agencies can provide significant relief to states facing pending eligibility and enrollment actions and processing delays, workforce and systems limitations, and other operational challenges. Ensuring eligible individuals do not lose coverage for procedural or administrative reasons and supporting those who are ineligible for Medicaid/CHIP transition to Marketplace coverage will be paramount for all states as they begin to resume normal operations when the federal public health emergency (PHE) ends. This expert perspective outlines the time-limited targeted enrollment flexibilities that CMS has availed to states through section 1902(e)(14) waiver authority and discusses considerations beyond the strategies described in federal guidance and supplemental resources.

June 15, 2022

Using Marketplace Retroactive Coverage to Facilitate Continuous Enrollment in the Public Health Emergency Unwinding

Providing a retroactive coverage option in the Marketplace is one innovative strategy for eliminating coverage gaps between Medicaid and Marketplace coverage for people eligible to make that transition at the end of the public health emergency. Pennsylvania’s state-based Marketplace, Pennie, is considering an optional retroactive coverage policy. This expert perspective describes the retroactive coverage policy innovation and its benefits, and offers strategies for states to consider in their implementation that will maximize coverage continuity, minimize adverse selection, and address potential operational challenges.