News Release

BOISE STATE NEWS RELEASE/April 18, 2008

BSU Awarded Grant to Evaluate Medicaid Reforms in Idaho

The Center for Health Policy at Boise State University is part of a group that has been awarded close to $400,000 from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to study the effects of recent Medicaid reforms. Boise State’s research partners in the two-year study are the Urban Institute of Washington D.C., the project’s lead organization, and the University of Kentucky.

Idaho and Kentucky were selected for the study because they are among the first to use the new authority granted to states under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. That act expanded states’ flexibility for the adoption of innovative methods to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their Medicaid programs.

Across the country, double-digit increases in health-care costs have raised concerns about the sustainability of state Medicaid programs and their implications for federal and state budgets. Because Idaho and Kentucky implemented related policy changes in very different contexts (geographic region, demographic make-up and Medicaid program size), examining both states together will provide insights about the extent to which responses to policy changes vary across states.

Ed Baker, director of the Center for Health Policy, states that, “The Center for Health Policy is pleased to be working with nationally recognized research partners in this Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded research project. The results of this work should help Idaho understand what has worked and what needs additional focus regarding Medicaid reform efforts in the state.”

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Media Contact: Kathleen Craven, University Communications, (208) 426-3275, kcraven@boisestate.edu

Boise State University’s new Finish in Four program guarantees that eligible students who follow a planned course of study can complete their degree in four years. If not, Boise State will pay for the additional required courses. More information about Boise State’s graduation guarantee can be found at www.boisestate.edu/finish4.
 

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Last reviewed on Friday, April 18, 2008