The 2018 elections provide a chance to bring oral health issues to the forefront of policymaker and public discussions—an important opportunity for an issue that is often forgotten, left behind, or misunderstood. Numerous seats are up for election this year including full U.S. House of Representatives, a third of the U.S. Senate, 36 governorships and many seats in state and local governments.

An increasing number of states are making harmful changes to their Medicaid programs using “Section 1115 waivers.” Families USA is tracking state Medicaid waivers that restrict access to quality, affordable health care for low-income families and adults. This new grid offers an overview of the status of each state’s waiver proposal, the restrictive elements of the waiver proposal, and CMS’s decision on each element. 

Earlier this week, Maryland and Virginia insurers filed proposed individual market premiums for 2019. Over the coming weeks and months, insurers in the other 48 states and DC will announce proposed premiums. In Maryland and Virginia, many insurers are asking for incredibly large premium increases. In Maryland, average requested rate increases are 30 percent over 2018. In Virginia, proposed premiums are rising more than 15 percent.

As the largest single source of health insurance and coverage for behavioral health services in the country, Medicaid plays a pivotal role in addressing substance use disorder (SUD). Medicaid covers nearly 4 in 10 non-elderly adults in the country with opioid addiction. But this coverage could go further: at least 17 percent of opioid addicts are uninsured, a rate nearly 50 percent higher than the general population.