The impact of the introduction of premiums into a SCHIP program

This paper examines the introduction of premiums into the <TOGGLE>SCHIP</TOGGLE> program in Kentucky. Kentucky introduced a $20 monthly premium for <TOGGLE>SCHIP</TOGGLE> coverage for children with family incomes between 151 percent and 200 percent of the federal poverty level in December 2003. Administrative data between 2001 and 2004 is used to estimate a Cox proportional hazard model that predicts enrollment duration in this premiumpaying category. The results suggest that a premium reduces the length of enrollment, with the impact concentrated in the first three months after the introduction of the premium. Similar results are not found for the non-premium-paying category. © 2007 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management