Medicaid: A Primer on the Federal-State Partnership

Medicaid will play a major role in extending coverage to millions of uninsured people in 2014 through provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.  More than 16 million newly qualified individuals are expected to enroll as a result of the law.

What is Medicaid and what is its role in the health care system?  Who is eligible and what benefits are covered?  How is the program administered?  How much does Medicaid cost and how is it financed? What is Medicaid’s role in health reform? To address these questions and more, the Alliance for Health Reform and the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured sponsored a March 4 briefing.