Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Health

Health Reform Essential For Reducing Deficit and Slowing Health Care Costs

Because rising health care costs represent the single largest cause of the federal government’s long-term budget problems, fundamental health reform must be part of any budget solution.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the Senate and House health reform bills would reduce deficits both over the decade from 2010 through 2019 and after that. Both bills also contain a wide range of measures to restructure the U.S. health system and slow the growth of health care costs, particularly Medicare costs. Read more

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Topics

Basics

Medicaid is a federal-state public insurance program that provides health coverage to more than 60 million low-income Americans, including children, parents, seniors, and people with disabilities. The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) gives states matching federal funds to provide health coverage to roughly 4 million children in families whose income is modestly above Medicaid limits, typically up to 200 percent of the poverty line, about $42,000 for a family of four. Medicare is a federal program that provides health coverage to more than 40 million Americans, primarily individuals age 65 and older but also including several million younger adults with permanent disabilities.

Policy Basics:
- Introduction to Medicaid

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The Center works to ensure that federal and state health insurance programs provide coverage that meets the health care needs of low-income children and families, as well as seniors and people with disabilities. The Center also works to remove barriers preventing eligible families from gaining access to health coverage.