Summary

Congress asked us to estimate the state allocations that would likely occur in the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) for the Medicaid funding included in Section 5001 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which is currently being debated by the Senate. This correspondence responds to your request for state-by-state, quarter-by-quarter estimates of the Medicaid funding states would receive under the section of the proposed legislation that temporarily increases the FMAP.

The legislation currently being considered in the Senate would provide (1) an increase in each state's FMAP of 7.6 percentage points for the Recession Adjustment Period identified in the legislation (the period from the first quarter of fiscal year 2009 through the end of the first quarter of fiscal year 2011), and (2) additional FMAP assistance based on increased unemployment as defined by the qualifying criteria outlined in the legislation if the state's unemployment rate increases at least 1.5 percentage points, but less than 2.5 percentage points (tier 1), at least 2.5 percentage points, but less than 3.5 percentage points (tier 2), or at least 3.5 percentage points (tier 3).