How States Can Use Automation to Increase Health Coverage for Children

The Urban Institute has a very useful report out on how states can increase enrollment of children in health insurance programs. The report details automated strategies that have

achieved remarkable results with many public and private benefit programs, dramatically increasing program participation while lowering administrative costs and reducing erroneous eligibility determinations. The recently passed Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA) should make such steps much easier for states to take in covering eligible but uninsured children. Following CHIPRA's enactment, states have both new tools and new incentives to use automated strategies in fulfilling four key functions: identifying uninsured children; determining their eligibility for health coverage; enrolling eligible children into coverage; and retaining eligible children.

For policies to increase access to Medicaid and SCHIP.