The Manatt team of Deborah Bachrach, Patricia Boozang, Melinda Dutton, Jocelyn Guyer and Kinda Serafi recently coauthored a paper titled “Manatt on Medicaid: 10 Trends to Watch in 2015,” in which they predict the top issues that will define Medicaid in the year ahead.

As predicted, increased Medicaid enrollment, particularly in expansion states, combined with new federal dollars available through State Innovation Model grants and Section 1115 Delivery System Reform Payment Programs, is fueling unprecedented Medicaid transformation efforts in the states. Indeed, it is hard to find a state that is not intent on becoming a smarter purchaser of services for its beneficiaries.

The growth in Medicaid is also reducing the uncompensated care costs of hospitals, providing millions of new enrollees for Medicaid managed care companies, and generating new customers for pharmaceutical manufacturers. Finally, and crucially, Medicaid’s growth nationwide is driving down uninsurance rates, connecting millions of Americans to health insurance and healthcare (many for the first time), and providing a solid foundation on which states can begin to tackle the thorny tasks of improving healthcare quality and access while containing costs.