Health Care

Access to quality, affordable health care for all residents is good for families, businesses, and the economy. Fortunately, Maryland has been a leader in expanding access to coverage for residents, but there is still work to do to improve access to health care and to lower its cost. 

MDCEP conducts research and analysis on health policies and programs in Maryland, evaluates new policy proposals, and advocates for polices that improve health outcomes, particularly for low and moderate income residents. 

Supporting a Healthier Maryland through Healthcare Expansion for Immigrant Communities

Everyone deserves quality and timely access to healthcare. We can strengthen the health of Marylanders by proving affordable healthcare to our communities and remove barriers that often produce socioeconomic and racial-ethnic health disparities. Such a barrier includes ineligibility resulting from varying immigration statuses, particularly for children and families who are undocumented or live in mixed-status households.

Rising Health Insurance Costs Hurt Maryland Workers and Small Businesses

The rising cost of health insurance is forcing many Maryland families to make tough choices between taking care of their health and meeting other basic needs. Insurance premiums have grown three times as fast as household incomes in Maryland since 2005, meaning that workers and families end up with less money to spend on housing, transportation, child care and other essentials.

Let’s Aim To Get All Maryland Kids Health Coverage

More than 40,000 Maryland kids aren’t covered by health insurance, and that needs to change. These are kids at risk of not seeing a doctor or getting medicine when they are sick, and unlikely to get routine preventive care, like physical exams and flu shots. This lack of medical attention can put them at a disadvantage throughout their lives.

Supporting a Healthier Maryland through Healthcare Expansion for Immigrant Communities

Everyone deserves quality and timely access to healthcare. We can strengthen the health of Marylanders by proving affordable healthcare to our communities and remove barriers that often produce socioeconomic and racial-ethnic health disparities. Such a barrier includes ineligibility resulting from varying immigration statuses, particularly for children and families who are undocumented or live in mixed-status households.

Improved Eligibility Method Leads to Sharp Increase in Students Qualifying for Free School Meals

State budget documents revealed a sharp increase in the number of public school students qualifying for free and reduced-price school meals after the state changed the method it uses to determine eligibility. More than 110,000 students in Maryland’s public schools qualified for free and reduced-price meals when the school year began last fall. – a 34% increase from the previous year. This measure is important not only for ensuring students from low-income families are able to get food at school so they are well prepared to learn, but also because this figure is used as a measurement of poverty in a given school in the school funding formula.