Coverage does not always equal care. Our focus is on expanding health insurance coverage and access to care, and developing strategies to increase coverage to reach those most in need.
Coverage and Care
Reports
Closing the Coverage Gaps: Reducing Health Insurance Disparities in Massachusetts
The purpose of this report is to begin charting a course toward closing the health insurance coverage gaps in Massachusetts, with a particular focus on creating a more racially and ethnically equitable system of coverage.A Focus on Health Care: Five Key Priorities for the Next Administration
This report identifies five of the most pressing health care issues in the Commonwealth as identified by a diverse set of stakeholders and a series of potential actions that the next administration can take to advance these priorities.Expanded Coverage and Savings: Effects in Massachusetts of Extending the American Rescue Plan Act's Enhanced Marketplace Subsidies
This report provides an analysis of the impacts of the enhanced premium subsidies for purchasing health insurance through the Marketplace, or Health Connector in Massachusetts, that ARPA temporarily authorized through 2022.Health Care in the ARPA Bill: Selected Highlights from Chapter 102 of the Acts of 2021
This issue brief summarizes the key components of Chapter 102 of the Acts of 2021, often referred to as the “ARPA bill,” that will affect health and health care in Massachusetts.Impact of the American Rescue Plan Act on the Massachusetts Health Care System
This report reviews some of the key components of the American Rescue Plan Act that will affect health care in Massachusetts.Understanding Legal Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: A Brief Review of Key Issues
This brief summarizes the main legal arguments at play in California v. Texas and the recent relevant case history.Potential Coverage and Federal Funding Losses for Massachusetts if California v. Texas Ultimately Overturns the Affordable Care Act
This brief and infographic describe the implications of a potential court ruling resulting in the repeal of the ACA on MA's coverage rates and federal funding.UPDATED! MassHealth and ConnectorCare Enrollment Tracker
Highlights the most recent monthly enrollment data available for MassHealth & ConnectorCare —the two most prominent sources of publicly financed health insurance in MA.UPDATED! Promoting Access to Care and Coverage During a Public Health Crisis: COVID-19–Related Changes Affecting MassHealth, Health Connector, and Health Safety Net
This table serves as a centralized resource that documents & describes the policy, regulatory, & administrative actions pertaining to MassHealth, Health Connector, & HSN.Potential Coverage and Federal Funding Losses for Massachusetts if Texas v. United States Ultimately Overturns the Affordable Care Act
This brief describes the implications of a potential court ruling resulting in the repeal of the ACA on Massachusetts’ health insurance coverage rates and federal funding.The Geography of Uninsurance in Massachusetts: An Update for 2013-2017
Using newly released data from the American Community Survey, this brief examines the geography of uninsurance in MA communities.2018 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey
This collection of materials is the latest in a series by the Urban Institute summarizing the findings from the 2018 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey (MHRS).Association Health Plans: A Primer and Key Considerations for Massachusetts
This brief frames the key issues and potential impacts to MA consumers that may result from implementation of the federal proposed rule to expand the availability of AHPs.A History of Promoting Health Coverage in Massachusetts
This brief provides an overview of the steps that MA has taken to establish a functioning market that provides consumers with meaningful access to health coverage.REVISED - Integrating MassHealth Long-Term Services and Supports: Considerations for ACOs and MCOs
This brief prioritizes issues for consideration as ACOs and MCOs prepare to integrate and fully manage comprehensive long-term services and supports.CHIP Reauthorization Update: Congressional Inaction Puts States in Limbo
This brief provides an update on the status of federal reauthorization for CHIP and a summary of its potential impact on the program in Massachusetts.The Importance of CHIP Reauthorization for Massachusetts
This report describes the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in Massachusetts and its role as part of MassHealth.The MassHealth Waiver 2016–2022: Delivering Reform
This issue brief summarizes the key elements of the most recent MassHealth 1115 waiver extension.Massachusetts Residents without Health Insurance Coverage: Understanding Those at Risk of Long-Term Uninsurance
This report analyzes data from 2011 and 2012 state tax filings to better understand the population in Massachusetts that remains uninsured over consecutive years.2013-2015 Connecting Consumers with Care Grant Area Evaluation
This report, authored by the UMass Center for Health Policy and Research, includes findings from the evaluation of the 2013-2015 Connecting Consumers with Care grant program.10 Years of Impact: A Literature Review of Chapter 58 of the Acts of 2006
As we mark the 10th anniversary of Ch. 58, this fact sheet presents a summary of the law’s effects, as reported in the many studies that have focused on MA reform.2015 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey
The 2015 MHRS highlights sustained gains in coverage since the passage of the 2006 health care reform law, as well as persistent gaps in health care access and affordability.The Remaining Uninsured in Massachusetts: Experiences of Individuals Living without Health Insurance Coverage
This report summarizes the findings of a qualitative study of uninsured individuals in MA to build a better understanding of the reasons they were uninsured.Health Care Cost Concerns Among Older Residents of Massachusetts
This report summarizes the results of a poll examining the experience of MA seniors on the issues of affordability, access, and satisfaction with their health care coverage.Minding the Gaps: The State of Coverage to Supplement Medicare in Massachusetts
This report examines the private and public coverage options available to seniors to help fill the gaps in Medicare.Monitoring Access to Care in Massachusetts: Comparing Public Coverage with Employer-Sponsored Insurance Coverage
This report analyzes the 2013 MHRS by comparing the experience of adults with public coverage to adults with ESI across a number of access and affordability measures.
Interactive Resources
Chapter 224 Tracking Tool, Updated November 2017
This updated tracking tool provides a detailed description of key components of Chapter 224, highlighting the progress the state has made in its implementation.The Geography of Uninsurance in Massachusetts, 2011-2015
This brief and set of detailed tables provide updated estimates of the number and rate of uninsurance in Massachusetts by various geographic units and categories.Chapter 224 Tracking Tool, Updated September 2016
This updated tracking tool provides a detailed description of key components of Chapter 224, highlighting the progress the state has made in its implementation.The Interactive Guide to Chapter 288
An online, interactive guide to Massachusetts' 2010 health care cost containment law.An Annotated Guide to Chapter 58
This resource outlines the legislative structures of Massachusetts health reform and associated regulations in an easy to understand format.
Chart Packs
Overview of the Senate Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017
This chart pack provides an overview of the Senate-proposed Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017.Modeling the Impacts of the American Health Care Act on Massachusetts
This state-level analysis models the impact of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) on Massachusetts focused on 2022, when the law would be fully phased in.Proposals to Cap State Medicaid Funding: Massachusetts Considerations
This chart pack provides an overview of proposals to cap federal Medicaid funding and the considerations for Massachusetts.UPDATED: Health Reform in Massachusetts: Assessing the Results
Chartpack summarizing the impact of the state’s 2006 health reform law. Data collected from state agency reports, national reports, and state surveys on access and coverage.