A time series study of the impact of eligibility expansion on Medicaid financing of births.

In a major reform addressing declines in coverage over the prior decade, Congress in 1986 allowed states to expand Medicaid eligibility to all pregnant women in poverty. However, at the outset of the expansions uncertainty existed as to whether eligibility expansion alone would result in greater coverage without aggressive outreach designed to bring more low-income pregnant women into the program. Using interrupted time series methods, the analyses presented in this paper show a significant increase in Medicaid financing of deliveries in two states that expanded eligibility and also made efforts to simplify application procedures and publicize the expansions. Policy implications of the findings are discussed.