No-, Low-Cost Children's Health Insurance Programs Fill Gap In Care For Some Low-Income Families

Programs that provide low- and no-cost health insurance for children can bridge the gap between families that qualify for Medicaid and those who can afford private insurance or have employer-sponsored coverage, Reuters reports. About nine million children are uninsured but are in families whose incomes are too high to qualify for Medicaid. According to Al Rohling of the Alabama Child Caring Foundation, which provides no-cost coverage for children through BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama, "Health care for children really is a bridge to get out of poverty." Reuters reports that parents are more likely to forgo needed medical care for uninsured children because of cost issues, which can lead to missed work time for the parent if a child's illness worsens. Rohling, who helped form the foundation, said that people need annual incomes of about 300% of the federal poverty level to afford private insurance, but that many states provide coverage only to those with incomes up to 200% of the federal poverty level. According to Rohling, programs such as the one offered by the Child Caring Foundation "fill the void between affordability and eligibility." About 90% of foundation beneficiaries switch to private insurance within about 30 months, Reuters reports. Jennifer Tolbert, a principal analyst for the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, said the number of uninsured children in the U.S. has increased since 2004. Tolbert said it is possible that the federal government could expand state SCHIP programs to cover more children when Congress considers reauthorizing the program this year (Gates, Reuters, 1/3).

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