Date of Award
Fall 1-2-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Economics
First Advisor
Partha Deb
Second Advisor
Kenneth McLaughlin
Academic Program Adviser
Matthew Baker
Abstract
Medicaid’s retroactive eligibility provision covers medical expenses for beneficiaries up to 90 days before the application date. Retroactive eligibility insulates uninsured, low-income households from expensive healthcare emergencies. New Hampshire, Arkansas, and Iowa recently obtained waivers to end retroactive coverage. Using a difference-in-differences design and data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, I evaluate whether changes in retroactive coverage affect enrollment rates and self-reported health. Removing retroactive eligibility has no statistically significant effects on insurance enrollment or self-reported health. However, it does increase rates of access to a doctor by 1.0% overall and by 1.6% for women. Removing retroactive eligibility does not affect men and Hispanics. Waivers modestly improve access to a doctor, but some groups experience greater benefits than others.
Recommended Citation
Benyamine, Mohamed Kacem, "Retroactive Eligibility Waivers: Innovative or Ineffective?" (2026). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/1420
