Maximizing Enrollment for Kids: Results from a Diagnostic Assessment of Enrollment and Retention in Eight States

Maximizing Enrollment for Kids, a $15 million initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) launched in June 2008 and directed by the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP), aims to increase enrollment and retention of eligible children into Medicaid and CHIP programs and to establish and promote best practices among states.  In this first year of the Maximizing Enrollment for Kids program NASHP collaborated with Health Management Associates (HMA) to conduct a baseline assessment of each grantee states’ policies and processes for enrolling and retaining children in coverage. The findings of these assessments provide a foundation for the work of these states over the next three years to improve enrollment of eligible children. These reports summarize the information gathered from the assessments of all eight states (Alabama, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin), organized by  themes of states’ work identified through that process, and presented as strengths, challenges and opportunities in each area. 

Diagnosing What Works for State Medicaid and CHIP Programs