Evaluation of State and Federal Young Adult Dependent Coverage Policies (SHARE 2)

It is well documented that young adults have a very high likelihood of lacking health insurance, with serious consequences for their health and financial well being. In response, 29 states extended eligibility for dependent coverage to young adults, and similar provisions are included in national health reform under the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Under a prior Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-supported project, the Center documented the impact of early state dependent coverage reforms, finding a shift to dependent coverage from other sources, but no impact on the number of uninsured. This research was limited to early state policy implementation (13 of 19 state laws studied were in place for under two years). The current project extends analyses conducted by CSHP, adding three years of data (2010 to 2012) to address two research questions: 1. How do variations in key access and cost provisions of state laws influence the coverage of targeted young adults? 2. How will the dependent coverage provisions of the ACA affect coverage of young adults as they are phased-in over 2010 and 2011? The project will produce timely, policy relevant issue briefs and peer-reviewed publications.