Data Graphics

The Health Policy Institute of Ohio has released the 11th edition of Ohio Medicaid Basics, a primer that provides an overview of the Medicaid program in Ohio.

Published every other year since 2005, to coincide with the biennial budget process, Ohio Medicaid Basics provides an overview of the Ohio Medicaid program, including eligibility, covered services, spending and recent policy changes. 

Medicaid is a public program that offers health insurance and other services to groups experiencing economic disadvantage, including children and families with low incomes, older adults and people with disabilities. These groups face unique challenges, including costly and complex health needs, challenging community conditions and socioeconomic barriers to health and well-being. The Medicaid program fortifies individuals and families against the financial strain of receiving needed health care.

There are more than 3 million Ohioans — more than 1 in 4 people in the state — enrolled in Medicaid, as illustrated above. This includes more than 1.2 million children. In State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2024, federal and state expenditures on Medicaid accounted for about 39% of Ohio’s state operating budget.

HPIO will analyze the impact of future state and federal Medicaid policy changes, such as Ohio’s proposed Medicaid work requirements, in future publications.

January is Substance Use Disorder Treatment Month and new analysis by the Health Policy Institute of Ohio found that thousands of Ohioans who need drug or alcohol treatment are not receiving it.

As illustrated above, some of the reasons for not receiving needed care include cost, transportation, lack of provider availability and challenges with insurance.

In recent years, access to mental health and addiction treatment has been a priority for state policymakers. RecoveryOhio’s 2024-2027 Strategic Plan lists access to treatment and recovery services as one of the five key pillars of its work. According to the plan, “Numerous resources and services exist, but many Ohioans find them difficult to identify and navigate. Intake into mental health or substance use disorder treatment is too frequently initiated by law enforcement or emergency room services.”

Click here to see a list of mental health and substance use resources from HPIO.

HPIO analysis that was included in its recently released policy spotlight “School-Based Health Care and Medicaid" found that the percentage of children ages 6-18 that were covered by public health insurance alone (e.g., Medicaid, military insurance) or in combination with private insurance, in each county ranges from a low of 9.9% in Delaware County to 53.7% in Hocking County during the 2022-2023 school year, as displayed above.

According to the publication, the federal government in 2014 increased flexibility for states to cover school-based health services for students enrolled in Medicaid (more than 703,000 students in Ohio). The new HPIO policy spotlight explores the opportunities this federal policy change presents for Ohio to leverage Medicaid reimbursement to improve the health and well-being of students.

“Children from families with low incomes, and therefore eligible for Medicaid, often experience more barriers to accessing health care due to factors such as lack of transportation or parent challenges taking time off work,” the report states. “These barriers increase the value of school-based health services for families.”

New data included in HPIO’s recently released data brief “Mental Health Conditions among Ohio Children and Youth” shows that children in Ohio with anxiety were slightly more likely to have moderate or severe anxiety than children around the country, as illustrated above.

Childhood mental health conditions are associated with an increased risk of chronic physical health conditions (e.g., diabetes, heart disease), continuing mental health problems and worse employment outcomes in adulthood.

The brief states, "Understanding this data, and engaging children, youth and their parents and caregivers, can lay the foundation for action and policy change."

The data brief is the first in a series of four planned HPIO publications on child and youth mental health that will be released over the next two years.

The Health Policy Institute of Ohio has released a new policy spotlight titled “School-Based Health Care and Medicaid.”

In 2014, the federal government increased flexibility for states to cover school-based health services for students enrolled in Medicaid (more than 703,000 students in Ohio). The new HPIO policy spotlight explores the opportunities this federal policy change presents for Ohio to leverage Medicaid reimbursement to improve the health and well-being of students.

“Providing a wider array of health services in schools can lead to better health and education outcomes for Ohio students, especially among those in underserved groups,” the paper concludes, noting that 26 other states have expanded Medicaid reimbursement for school-based healthcare services beyond students with an individualized education program (IEP).

As illustrated above, as of October 2023, 15 states expanded the population of students for whom Medicaid can reimburse for healthcare services to include all Medicaid-enrolled students (not only those with an IEP). In addition, six states expanded Medicaid reimbursement to a limited set of services (e.g., behavioral health services, school nursing services) to all Medicaid-enrolled students and four states expanded eligibility for Medicaid reimbursement to a subset of the Medicaid-enrolled student population (e.g., students with a 504 plan, which is a formal document that outlines supports or modifications needed by a student with disabilities to ensure they have equal access to education).

The Health Policy Institute of Ohio has released a new data brief titled “Mental Health Conditions among Ohio Children and Youth.”

In recent years, rates of mental health conditions have increased among Ohio children and youth. As illustrated above, in 2023, a fifth (20%) of middle school students and a third (33%) of high school students in Ohio reported that their mental health was not good most or all of the time.

Childhood mental health conditions are associated with an increased risk of chronic physical health conditions (e.g., diabetes, heart disease), continuing mental health problems and worse employment outcomes in adulthood.

The brief states, "Understanding this data, and engaging children, youth and their parents and caregivers, can lay the foundation for action and policy change."

The data brief is the first in a series of four planned HPIO publications on child and youth mental health that will be released over the next two years.