Brookings: Topics - Medicaid

Reforming the Medicaid Disproportionate-Share Hospital Program

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Congress is considering redirecting federal spending on the Medicaid disproportionate-share hospital (DSH) program to help pay for health reform. Aaron McKethan, S. Lawrence Kocot and other experts discuss linking Medicaid DSH spending to state-level Medicaid enrollment or uninsured populations, or both, as a way of creating significant federal savings over time without exposing hospitals to uncertain or across-the-board spending cuts.

The Potential Role of Entitlement or Budget Commissions in Addressing Long-term Budget Problems

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The United States faces a looming fiscal imbalance brought on by an aging population and rising health care costs. Yet, the current political environment discourages our leadership from making the tough choices required to fix our fiscal house. In this paper, a diverse group of budget experts reviews some of the recent history of appointed commissions, and discusses their potential role in long-term federal budgeting policy.

The Economic Impact of Health Care Reform

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

June 02, 2009, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM

On June 2, Christina Romer, chair of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, joined Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform director Mark McClellan, Harvard economist David Cutler and former Congressional Budget Office director Douglas Holtz-Eakin to discuss the economic case for health care reform and its potential impact on the U.S. economy.

Health Care Reform: Beware of Interest Groups Bearing Gifts

Tue, 12 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The Obama administration’s breakthrough with the health care industry to cut costs is eerily reminiscent of the 1970s, according to Henry Aaron. Then, as today, health care spending was outpacing income growth and the industry promised to voluntarily to rein in the growth. If we are to learn from history, rather than simply repeat it, he says, there are some simple but vitally important lessons.

U.S. Health Care Reform: The Art of the Possible

Sat, 09 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Behind closed doors all over Washington, serious people are working hard to design a major overhaul of the U.S. health care system. We should wish them well, but their chances of success are slim, says Henry Aaron. Since yet another complete failure would be catastrophic, some attention should be given now to policies that, he says, are politically palatable and would begin the evolution to a new and better health system.

Health Care Reform and President Obama's Budget

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:23:33 GMT

In this video, Alice Rivlin says that President Obama's budget calls for taxing the wealthy to help pay for aggressive reform of the nation’s health care system and that the plan also seeks to curtail wasteful Medicare and Medicaid spending while increasing services and efficiency in those programs.

There is No Entitlement Crisis

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

That the United States faces daunting long-term budget challenges is indisputable. But the very projections—those of the Congressional Budget Office—cited to document the long-term budget challenge, show that there is no general entitlement problem, says Henry Aaron. Rather, he argues, the nation faces a daunting health care financing problem that bedevils private insurers and public programs alike.

Economic Stimulus and the Budget Deficit

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 12:22:55 GMT

In these tough times, the economy needs a stimulus, regardless of the impact on the deficit, says Isabel Sawhill. But prudent action needs to be taken to address runaway entitlement spending and that agenda should reconsider our intergenerational spending priorities.

Memo to President Obama: Ensure that Health Reform Finally Succeeds

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Congress quickly passed the State Children's Health Insurance Program in its opening days, but the Obama administration and congressional leaders want to do far more to extend health insurance coverage and reform the delivery of care. While obstacles that have frustrated prior reform efforts remain powerful, Henry Aaron says that the key for Obama will be to identify specific reforms that will move toward his long-term vision.

A Budget We Can Believe In

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

A diverse group of experts urged President Obama, in his first budget submission, to strike a judicious balance between America’s short-term and long-term economic needs. While the need to boost spending to stimulate the economy is important, they say these short-term steps must not make it harder to achieve our long-term goals. They note that fundamental reforms of major entitlement programs and the tax system are needed to bring spending and revenues into better balance over the longer-term.

Short and Long-Run Fiscal Challenges

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

In testimony to the Senate Budget Committee, Alice Rivlin argued that the future health of the nation’s economy depends on whether policy-makers can focus on two imperatives at once: the need to take immediate action to mitigate the impact of the recession; and the need to restore long-term fiscal responsibility and reassure our creditors that we are getting our fiscal house in order.

The Pitfalls of Overreaching In Health Reform

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Although fundamental reform of U.S. health care is clearly necessary, there are still daunting obstacle: the sheer size of the health sector, the multiplicity of powerful groups with conflicting interests, and the factionalized U.S. political system. But change is in the air and chances for health care reform seem more likely than ever. However, Henry Aaron argues not to overreach and risk failure; instead he says the focus should be on essential and achievable steps that will sustain long-term change.

The Role of States in a National Health Reform Effort

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Henry Aaron, Stuart Butler, Alan Weil, and Judy Feder join moderator Larry Levitt of kaisernetwork.org in a Ask the Experts webcast for a discussion of the role of states in a national health reform effort.

Rebuild Economic Confidence by Reforming Entitlements

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

“Washington may bail out Wall Street. But who will bail out Washington?” The Fiscal Wake-Up Tour group, Robert Bixby, Stuart Butler and Isabel Sawhill, discusses the importance of fundamentally recasting Medicare versus solely focusing on immediate health care reform.

Waste and the Health Care System

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

According to a widely held view, the U.S. health care system is replete with waste, the removal of which can finance health care reform. Unfortunately, what waste really means is poorly understood, and the potential for realizing quick savings is quite limited. Several measures hold out the promise of curbing the growth of health care spending, but savings are likely to be slow in coming says Henry Aaron.

Why We Need to Cut Seniors' Benefits

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Isabel Sawhill discusses the big three of entitlement programs - Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid and how they will wreak havoc on the country's finances (and yours) unless we scale them back.

Rising to the Challenge of Real Health Care Reform

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The high and rising cost of expanding coverage is a major reason why previous attempts to achieve universal coverage have not succeeded, and why reform will keep getting harder, writes Mark McClellan, if we use the same approaches as in the past.

Reducing Unplanned Pregnancies through Medicaid Family Planning Services

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In this paper, Melissa Kearney and Phillip Levine analyze the impact of state policies that expanded eligibility for Medicaid family planning services to women who do not meet regular Medicaid eligibility criteria. The results of their research show that the expanded eligibility policies had a significant impact on reducing unplanned births.

A Balanced Approach to Restoring Fiscal Responsibility

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

With baby boomers beginning to retire and health care spending outpacing income growth, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security face an uncertain financial future. Henry Aaron, Charles Schultze and other experts propose a radical change in budget procedures to address the budget deficits currently projected for future decades.

Candidate Issue Index: Fiscal Responsibility

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Isabel Sawhill presents leading presidential candidates' positions on issues of fiscal responsibility, including: taxes, government programs and budgetary process issues . This chart is part of a series of issue indices to be published during the 2008 presidential election cycle.

Closing Budget Deficits: An Entitlements Commission is Not the Answer

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Henry J. Aaron testified before the House Committee on the Budget about H.R. 3654, a bill that would establish a federal budget commission to "reform tax policy and entitlement benefit programs and ensure a sound fiscal future."

Presidential Candidates Should Address Looming Budget Deficits

Mon, 26 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

With Congress poised to approve a budget blueprint that offers no relief for long-term deficit woes, Isabel Sawhill says that it’s time for presidential candidates to discuss ways to reshape the nation’s fiscal priorities and return to a more responsible path. Right now, she writes, little is being done to prevent a disaster.

Budget Chaos: What, Me Worry?

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As the baby boomers begin to retire this year, the burden of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid will grow relentlessly. With more people in the programs and more expensive benefits, the nation will quickly encounter a budget disaster. Bill Frenzel and Ron Haskins say that dramatic reforms are needed to avoid budget chaos for future generations.

Taking Back our Fiscal Future

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Unsustainable deficits in the federal budget threaten the health and vigor of the American economy. When the next president and Congress take office in January 2009, they will face one crucial question that has been almost absent from the current election campaign: how to close the enormous gap between projected federal spending and revenues.

How To Take Back Our Fiscal Future

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

March 31, 2008, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM

Some of the nation’s top economists and budget policy experts presented a new paper arguing that the first step toward establishing budget responsibility is to reform the budget decision process so that Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid—the major drivers of escalating deficits—are no longer on auto-pilot.

Our Looming Medical Cost Catastrophe: What’s to be Done?

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

March 07, 2008, 8:30 AM to 4:15 PM

Panelists at this conference, co-sponsored by Brookings and the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University, considered why past efforts to contain health costs have failed and how America might achieve cost-sensitive health care reform in the future. Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Congressional Budget Office Director Peter Orszag offered remarks.

Health Care Challenges for Our Next President

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:45:24 GMT

Senior Fellow Henry Aaron explains to ABC’s Martha Raddatz that our next president will confront major health policy decisions with far-reaching effects on the life of virtually every American.

Budget Crisis, Entitlement Crisis, Health Care Financing Problem—Which Is It?

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Henry Aaron raises questions about the health-care budget and finding solutions to this long term problem.

Slowing the Growth of Health Spending: We Need Mixed Strategies, and We Need to Start Now

Wed, 15 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Americans are deeply concerned about paying their mounting bills for health care. This is true whether they have public (Medicare or Medicaid) or private insurance. And it’s certainly true for the 46 million people with no insurance at all. At the same time, the federal government’s health spending is clearly unsustainable. If current commitments are kept, other government services will have to be slashed or taxes increased drastically just to pay for Medicare and Medicaid.

Subsidized Contraception, Fertility, and Sexual Behavior

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Melissa S. Kearney and Phillip B. Levine examine the impact of state-level Medicaid policy changes that expanded eligibility for family planning services to higher income women and to Medicaid clients whose benefits would expire otherwise.

Financing Health Care with Limited Resources

Thu, 07 Oct 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Speech by Henry J. Aaron, Conference on Health Care Challenges Facing the Nation (10/7/04)

Living Longer: The Challenges of an Aging Population

Thu, 25 May 2000 00:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

May 25, 2000 at 12:00 AM