After providing coverage to more than a quarter of the U.S. population in 2019, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program enrollment recorded increases of 8.9 percent between July 2020 and May 2021, according to a report from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission.
Seven statistics to know:
1. In 2019, Medicaid covered 83 million people while CHIP covered 9.7 million individuals, according to the report. Over one third (36.3 percent) of children were covered by one of the two programs.
2. Adults who were newly eligible for Medicaid coverage through the ACA accounted for 24 percent of enrollees and 18 percent of 2019's spending.
3. The recent Medicaid and CHIP enrollment jump is larger than the 6.1 percent uptick in enrollees reported between July 2019 and July 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
4. Economic recessions and Medicaid expansion play a significant role in enrollment growth, especially among adults. The programs saw a 5.8 percent jump in adult enrollees during the 2008-2013 recession, and Medicaid expansions resulted in an average of 9.9 percent growth in adult enrollment annually between 2013 and 2019.
5. Individuals enrolled in either Medicaid or CHIP were more likely to report fair or poor health conditions compared to those enrolled in private coverage, according to the report. However, they were just as likely to report seeing a doctor as those with private insurance.
6. Medicaid spending for the 2020 fiscal year was $688 billion and represented 8.9 percent growth over spending in 2019.
7. Both Medicaid and CHIP combined account for the lowest share (16.7 percent) of federal health spending compared to Medicare (21.1 percent) and private insurance (31.5 percent).