Growing Number of Uninsured Children
The number of uninsured children increased from 1996-99, despite growing enrollment in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), concludes a Families USA survey of the 12 states with the most uninsured children.
Why? Increases in CHIP enrollment don’t make up for declines in Medicaid participation, the group says. The 12 surveyed states are Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
From December 1998 to June 1999, CHIP enrollment in these states grew from 600,000 to 921,000. Meanwhile, the number of children receiving Medicaid in the 12 states dropped by almost 1 million.
Families USA blames welfare reform for declining over-all insurance coverage. Children on welfare used to get Medicaid automatically. Under welfare reform (PL 104-193), children whose parents receive welfare are still eligible for Medicaid but don’t receive it automatically.
States have been “very slow to fixing the systems that were supposed to protect the health care coverage of families moving from welfare to work,” Families USA says.
FUSA, (202) 628-3030; http://www.familiesusa.org