With continued implementation of the Affordable Care Act and debate regarding the future extension of the Children’s Health Insurance Program lessons learned from individual state experiences can inform future policymaking at the state and federal levels.

Researchers from Emory University and Georgia State University conducted a comprehensive analysis of the effect of state expansions targeting parents and children from 1999 to 2012, along with the effect that accompanying premiums and subsidies had on family coverage decisions.

Overall levels of child coverage increased even when states expanded eligibility through programs with premiums, although increases in public and private premiums had a negative impact on insurance status. Expansions for parents increased their coverage as well as that of their children. Please click here to read other key findings regarding parent eligibility expansions and premiums in the issue brief, Families Matter: Insuring Both Parents and Their Children.

This work was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation under a grant from the Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization initiative.

Health & Healthcare Financing

Policy & Economic Analysis