Over the past month, NPP's Federal Priorities Database has been updated with the latest state-level information on: Health Insurance Coverage Health Insurance Coverage by Age Underemployment Food Insecurity Temporary Assistance for Need Families (TANF) - number of individuals and famililes Search the Federal Priorities Database to see maps comparing your...

Everyone has a story about health care in the U.S. Make sure your health care priorities are voiced in upcoming debates about Obamacare, Medicaid, Medicare, and other federal health programs.

This election season has put a lot of focus on Medicare, the federal health insurance program for the elderly. There’s been less emphasis on Medicaid, the health program for low-income Americans, though both President Obama and Governor Romney would dramatically change Medicaid. Currently Medicaid serves mainly children and those senior citizens who require long-term care.

Unemployment rose sharply following the start of the Great Recession in 2007. At the same time, enrollment in Medicaid increased as Americans who were hard-hit in the economic downturn qualified for the health insurance program for low-income Americans. Medicaid enrollment rose from 16.6 percent of the under-65 population in 2007 to 20.6 percent in 2010.