State programs that provide health coverage to low-income workers are an important means of covering millions of otherwise uninsured low-income workers. But such programs vary widely from state to state. A new Urban Institute study suggests that, if federal policymakers offered states the right mix of fiscal and programmatic inducements, many more low-income workers could get health coverage through state programs.
In "Medicaid Coverage for the Working Uninsured: The Role of State Policy" (Health Affairs, November/December 2002), researchers Randall R. Bovbjerg, Jack Hadley, Mary Beth Pohl, and Marc Rockmore examined state programs for insuring low-income workers. The authors then analyzed differences in states' ability and willingness to help these uninsured workers.
