"What Has Caused the Growth in Medicaid Spending in Recent Years?" 1/26/2005
Barbara Jordan Conference Center, Washington, D.C.
Briefing
( video
)
(
transcript )
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured and Health Affairs sponsored this briefing to release a web-exclusive article, "Understanding the Recent Growth in Medicaid Spending, 2000-2003," which found Medicaid spending increased to $276 billion by FY2003 -- up one-third from FY2000. The program's growth was largely due to rapid and increased enrollment of children and parents in low-income families, according to the study.
"Medicaid played its role as a safety net, providing coverage to those facing economic declines and loss of employer sponsored insurance," the study's author John Holahan said, "but the result was a sharp increase in program costs."
"We know states are struggling with Medicaid spending and the pressure it puts on other state priorities, but this study shows that Medicaid costs actually grew at a slower rate than private insurance costs. The real problem is rising health care costs and the states ability to pay the bill, and not that Medicaid spending is out of control," said Diane Rowland, executive director of KCMU.
View the study and related briefing materials on the Kaiser Family Foundation Web site.
Moderators:
- Diane Rowland, Sc.D., executive director, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured
- John Iglehart, editor, Health Affairs
Presenters:
- John Holahan, Ph.D., director, health policy, Urban Institute
- Nancy Atkins, chair, National Association of State Medicaid Directors and commissioner, Bureau of Medical Services, West Virginia
- Bill Scanlon, Ph.D., consultant, Health Research R&D
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