title: Accuracy in self-reported health insurance coverage among Medicaid enrollees.
abstract: The largest portion of the Medicaid undercount is caused by survey reporting error--that is, Medicaid recipients misreport their enrollment in health insurance coverage surveys. In this study, we sampled known Medicaid enrollees to learn how they respond to health insurance questions and to document correlates of accurate and inaccurate reports. We found that Medicaid enrollees are fairly accurate reporters of insurance status and type of coverage, but some do report being uninsured. Multivariate analyses point to the prominent role of program-related factors in the accuracy of reports. Our findings suggest that the Medicaid undercount should not undermine confidence in survey-based estimates of uninsurance.
authors.affiliation: Division of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Mayo Mail Code 729, 420 Delaware St., S.E., Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA. callx001@umn.edu
authors.forename: Kathleen Thiede
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Call
authors.forename: Gestur
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Davidson
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Davern
authors.forename: E Richard
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kincheloe
authors.forename: Justine G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Nelson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002140:California; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D019458:Insurance Coverage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008484:Medicaid / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010414:Pennsylvania; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult