Health insurance among children: the role of expanded Medicaid coverage.
This study uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to track the health coverage of parents in the year before and the year in which their children enroll in Medicaid. Use of such longitudinal data, compared to cross-sectional data, provides more insight into the dynamics of health insurance coverage and expansions in Medicaid. Using these data, we find that approximately 16% of newly enrolled Medicaid children likely had access to private insurance through a parent. Moreover, most of the children enrolling in Medicaid were previously uninsured. We find little substitution of private for public health insurance among families living at or near the federal poverty line.
Thorpe
K E
KE
Department of Health Systems Management, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112-2699, USA.
Florence
C S
CS
D002648:Child; D002662:Child Health Services / Q000191:economics*; D006264:Health Benefit Plans, Employee / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008484:Medicaid / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D017057:Medically Uninsured; D017149:Private Sector; D017150:Public Sector; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States