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Half of Californians in the country illegally would be eligible for the state’s healthcare program for the poor if it were expanded under a proposal by legislators, a new report finds. Some California politicians are pushing to open up the $91-billion Medi-Cal program to people here illegally, since such immigrants are not allowed to sign up for insurance under Obamacare. (Karlamangla, 11/9)

Half of California's undocumented immigrants -- about 1.4 million -- have incomes low enough to qualify for full Medi-Cal benefits should California legislative proposals to offer coverage to the undocumented ever be enacted. That is among the key findings of a Public Policy Institute of California report released Monday night which examines current policy options to provide health coverage to the state's undocumented immigrants. (Seipel, 11/9)

Two recent independent studies gave Ohio high marks for efforts to allow Medicaid patients to stay in home and community settings rather than in institutions. The studies focused on care for those needing long term support services -- generally the elderly -- and those needing mental health services. Options that allow Medicaid clients to remain in community settings generally cost less than institutions. (Higgs, 11/9)

A bipartisan commission says New Hampshire lawmakers should consider adding comprehensive dental benefits to the state's Medicaid program for adults. The commission, which was created last year to analyze barriers to dental care in New Hampshire, released its final report on Monday. It found that the state does well on some measures, such as having the lowest percentage of third-graders with untreated tooth decay, but did worse on others. For example, about a quarter of New Hampshire adults haven't visited a dentist in the last year. (11/9)