Center for Health Care Strategies Brief Highlights Efforts to Improve Medicaid and CHIP Managed Care

The Center for Health Care Strategies has released a new policy brief outlining the ways in which the group is working with state Medicaid and CHIP programs to "develop, pilot and implement high quality and cost-effective managed care purchasing strategies." As the number of Medicaid beneficiaries enrolled in managed care has increased from 2.7 million (14%) in 1991 to 17 million (54%) in 2000, the center -- a not-for-profit organization that works to improve health care of low-income populations and individuals with chronic illnesses and disabilities -- developed the CHCS Purchasing Institute, designed to "help Medicaid and CHIP directors and their staff improve their purchasing skills" and construct successful managed care programs. So far, 21 states have participated in the institute, which offers annual workshops, help in implementing managed care plans and "free follow-up technical assistance." The brief also outlines how the institute has worked with Maryland and Kansas to improve their Medicaid managed care programs. It concludes: "[S]tates and health plans with a commitment to long term partnerships have turned their energies toward quality improvement. Thus, for many states, staying the course has meant being able to focus on collecting data and benchmarking performance, with the goal of improving the health outcomes of beneficiaries" (Boehm, "Confronting Health Care Purchasing Challenges Within a New Framework," August 2001). The brief is available online. Note: You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the document.