The Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a paper pertaining to Congress's moves to redefine modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) to include Social Security income. CRS cites three issues that Congress should consider if the definition of income is changed. First, because MAGI can be computed largely from federal tax return information, verification of income is streamlined. Thus, by including additional provisions, there will be increased administrative complexity involved with calculating an individual's MAGI. Second, the original definition was developed to promote coordination between Medicaid and premium credits in the health insurance exchange. Thus, this definition change should not only apply to income definition for Medicaid, but also should apply to premium credits. Third, bill proposals have focused largely on the inclusion of Social Security benefits in MAGI for eligibility purposes. However, many other low-income programs include other types of income and asset holdings that are also excluded from MAGI.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's State Health Reform Assistance Network has released a new report analyzing the recently-released proposed regulations related to the Medicaid eligibility expansion, Exchange eligibility determinations, and Premium Tax Credit eligibility under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The report provides an overview of the proposed rules and offers new insight into how these regulations will inform State implementation of health reform.