Experimental Design
Experiment 1: Throughout 2013, Oregon allocated a limited number of spots in OHP Standard – the state’s Medicaid expansion program for non-disabled adults with incomes up to 100% of FPL – by selecting names by lottery from a waiting list. Anyone selected had a 45 day window in which they could enroll; after that their application would not be accepted. We excluded individuals who were discovered to have moved out of state or already be enrolled in OHP through another avenue.
Experiment 2: Oregon’s Medicaid lottery ended when it chose to participate in the ACA Medicaid expansion in late 2013. As part of this expansion, in October 2013 the state launched an abbreviated “fast track” enrollment process for individuals presumed to be eligible for Medicaid because of participation in other means-tested programs, including households with active enrollment in the state’s SNAP (food stamps) or “Healthy Kids” program (a supplemental insurance program for children), but who were not enrolled in Medicaid. The “fast track” process consisted of simply signing and returning a form, foregoing the usual Medicaid application process because eligibility for the other programs had already been determined. Those who returned the form would be covered as of January 1, 2014 (although the forms could be returned until March 2014). Our study sample consisted of 159,015 members of the fast track list who had received an initial mailing from the state in September, but had not yet enrolled as of November.