This case study discusses the trends in new Medicaid and SCHIP enrollment in New Jersey from 1999 through 2003. In particular, the authors were interested in examining the potential links between new enrollment trends and major outreach strategies or policy changes that took place in New Jersey, especially those associated with the Covering Kids & Families® (CKF) grant.
Ideally, the authors would examine such links through a more formal impact analysis that estimates the effect of individual policy changes or outreach efforts on the number of children enrolling in Medicaid or SCHIP. This type of analysis was not possible, however, because many of the outreach efforts and policy changes occurred at the same time. In addition, no state or other geographic area is a defensible comparison group for a more rigorous analysis.
The case study approach, which combines exploratory data analysis with in-depth key informant interviews, allowed the authors to assess the potential influence that major outreach efforts or policy changes have had on new enrollments.