CHIP and Medicaid Child Enrollment in the Southeast

According to the National Health Interview Survey (2019), approximately 41% of U.S. children under the age of 18 have health insurance coverage that is supported through public funding. While health insurance plans for government employees, including military personnel, account for some of the child enrollment in publicly funded health insurance programs, the vast majority of such coverage is provided by the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid. CHIP and Medicaid are joint federal-state health insurance programs for eligible Americans with limited income and resources.  Medicaid is aimed at low income individuals and families, whereas CHIP is aimed specifically at children from poor families that earn too much to qualify for standard Medicaid coverage.  September 2020 federal reports indicate that nearly 37.4 million individuals were either enrolled in CHIP or were children enrolled in the Medicaid program.

The September 2020 data reveals that the twelve-state Southeast region of the U.S. accounted for about 24.7% of all American children who were enrolled in CHIP and 29.4% of U.S. children enrolled in the Medicaid program.  Here is a closer look at the numbers for CHIP and Medicaid Child enrollment in the Southeast:

CHIP and Medicaid Child Enrollment in the Southeast

State	(1) CHIP	(2) Medicaid Child	Total
AL	174.0	513.5	687.5
AR	34.9	346.6	381.5
FL	201.2	2,418.0	2,619.2
GA	228.3	1,171,2	1,399.5
KY	93.8	500.0	593.8
LA	135.1	609.6	744.7
MS	81.5	363.6	445.1
NC	288.9	955.0	1,243.9
SC	98.3	572.0	670.3
TN	128.7	737.3	866.0
VA	158.6	641.4	800.0
WV	33.8	187.7	221.5
Region	1,657.1	9,015.9	10,673.0
U.S.	6,719.1	30,641.9	37,361.0

(1) CHIP enrollment, in thousands

(2) Children enrolled in Medicaid plans, in thousands (derived by deducting State reported CHIP enrollment from State Reported Total Medicaid Child and CHIP enrollment)

Source: Medicaid.gov Enrollment Reports as of September, 2020