Assessment of Rates of Child Maltreatment in States With Medicaid Expansion vs States Without Medicaid Expansion

Key Points Question Is the state expansion of Medicaid associated with rates of child physical abuse and neglect? Findings In this ecological study comparing pre– and post–Medicaid expansion state-level rates of child physical abuse and neglect from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data Systems, after adjusting for confounders, there were fewer cases of reported neglect (422 fewer per 100 000 younger than 6 years) in states that expanded Medicaid than during that time in nonexpansion states, which had a baseline rate of 3944 cases per 100 000 children younger than 6 years in 2013. Meaning These results suggest that Medicaid expansion may serve as a means to prevent child neglect.