Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Access to Care Among Children: How Does Medicaid do in Closing the Gaps?
While Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) have become increasingly important sources of health coverage for low-income children in all racial and ethnic groups, the program plays an especially large role for children of color, who are more likely than white children to be low-income. In 2007, Medicaid and CHIP covered nearly one in five white children, but roughly two in five African American and Hispanic children. As policymakers engaged in health reform consider the merits of public and private approaches to expanding coverage, this report provides an assessment of Medicaid’s relative impact on racial and ethnic disparities in access. The analysis compared health care access for white, African American and Hispanic children who were privately insured, uninsured, or enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP. Key findings include:
Report (.pdf) |
Information provided by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, the Health Care Marketplace Project, and the Race/Ethnicity and Health Care Program Publication Number: 8031 Publish Date: 2009-12-17 |