Medicaid Made Easier

These free-to-use Topic Sheets are designed to introduce people to Medicaid's key functions and operations. Download, distribute, and tell us how we can make these better!

Trump, Take 2: Behavioral Health Policy Shifts

We have identified three broad strategies the Administration is highly likely to pursue. We then identify ten tactics we expect to see used to realize those strategies. We close with a surprise: a seeming gift with a nasty kicker!

Introducing the Series

We describe why we're doing this series, what it will cover, and how you can get involved!

01: How Medicaid Works

The first Topic Sheet describes how Medicaid operates across Federal, State and Local levels of government. The first page is an infographic showing how decision making occurs. The second page provides additional narrative and resources regarding how the Medicaid program operates.

02: What is FFP?

Our second Topic Sheet walks through the history of Federal Financial Participation, also known as 'the match.' The Federal match has been a key driver of states' participation in Medicaid. This brief describes how it works.

03: What is Fee for Service?

This Topic Sheet walks through the history and future of the 'original' Medicaid payment strategy: Fee for Service. We describe how it was originally designed, how it operates now, and the changes being proposed in Rule to keep it relevant.

04: What is EPSDT?

This expansive entitlement is often misunderstood, and underutilized by Medicaid system administrators. This brief walks through what EPSDT covers, how states are using it, and recent work to return the use of EPSDT to its original intent -- as a preventive, proactive approach to fostering healthy children.

05: Medicaid in a System of Care

The fifth and final Topic Sheet in this series addresses how Medicaid works in a System of Care. We highlight Medicaid eligibility guidelines across three different public systems that a child may enter: schools, child welfare, and juvenile justice. We briefly describe recent changes to access processes and eligibility criteria.