Medicaid and indigent care issue brief: Medicaid: managed care

In an effort to reduce the high cost of fee-for-service health care, many states have implemented managed care into their Medicaid programs. Managed care has many forms, but the most traditional measures states adopt are fully capitated, partially capitated, or primary care case management (PCCM) programs. According to the Kaiser Commission on the Future of Medicaid, enrollment in Medicaid managed care has grown dramatically from 2.7 million beneficiaries in 1991 to 16.6 million in 1998. Over half (53.6 percent) of Medicaid beneficiaries, predominately poor children and their parents, are enrolled in some form of managed care.