With commercial health plans dropping out of the Medicaid market in the last few years, state agencies are now more dependent on Medicaid-focused health plans. Whether these plans are providing high quality and cost-effective care for enrollees and the long-term viability of these plans are key concerns for states.

This resource paper sought to evaluate how Medicaid plans perform compared to multi-product commercial plans. The findings confirm that plans remaining in Medicaid are increasingly strong, sophisticated, and compliant with state requirements. State officials interviewed overwhelmingly voiced approval for Medicaid-focused plans and acknowledged high levels of performance standards.

This is part of a series of CHCS reports exploring the evolving managed care industry within publicly financed care (see the links below for additional reports in this series).