This report from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured provides updated, comprehensive, and detailed information on eligibility and other requirements for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia. Currently, there are extremely complex eligibility rules for both programs based on income, age and family composition.
While the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) will smooth out some of the state-by-state variation with significant expansion of eligibility for Medicaid, the PPACA will then add to this already complex patchwork with the introduction of state health exchanges, offering multiple health insurance products with varying coverages and payment requirements.
Of particular note is Table 9, which lists the current status of the use of electronic enrollment systems by the states. Currently, 32 states can receive electronic applications for Medicaid and 27 states can receive electronic applications for CHIP. When they become operational in 2014, all the state health exchanges will likely use electronic enrollment systems, as well as ensure that individuals and families eligible for Medicaid and CHIP are enrolled into those programs before being considered for eligibility for one of the insurance products from the state health exchange.
Ignatius Bau 