Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program total enrollment jumped by more than 4 million in first half of 2020

Enrollment in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program increased by more than 4 million in the first half of 2020, according to newly released federal data. 

"The 5.7 percent jump between February and June came as millions of people lost their jobs — and, for many, their health insurance too — amid the public health emergency. Also, a coronavirus relief package Congress passed in mid-March barred states from cutting eligibility and disenrolling beneficiaries during the pandemic," Tami Luhby reports for CNN. "More than 2.4 million adults enrolled in Medicaid, an increase of 7.2%. Also, 1.4 million kids signed up for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, a jump of 4.1%. (This data does not include Arizona and the District of Columbia, which did not report the breakouts for adult and child enrollment for one or more months covered in the report.)"

The increase reversed a slow decline in Medicaid enrollment and uninsured Americans since mid-2017. But it was less than some experts had predicted in the spring because some workers were only furloughed instead of laid off, and therefore got to keep their work-based health insurance, Luhby reports.