WASHINGTON, DC– A new report released today provides clear evidence that using the federal income tax system to assist in the enrollment of eligible, uninsured children into Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) would yield dramatic gains in health coverage for our nation’s poorest children.
The report, entitled Nine in Ten: Using the Tax System to Enroll Eligible, Uninsured Children into Medicaid and SCHIP, was commissioned by First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization. The report was authored by researchers at the Urban Institute, including senior research associate Stan Dorn, in addition to many others.
“For years, policymakers, advocates, and program administrators have been searching for the most effective and efficient method to enroll qualified, low-income children into public coverage programs. Today’s report resoundingly indicates that using federal income tax forms to identify eligible but uninsured children would fast track the enrollment of nine out of every ten of them into SCHIP or Medicaid. Indeed, this is a major breakthrough for the millions of children who continue to go without health coverage despite meeting eligibility requirements. We are hopeful that the findings of this report will bolster efforts already underway to reduce paperwork-related barriers to coverage, helping to ensure that all children have the healthy start they need to live productive lives,” said Bruce Lesley, President of First Focus.
The report analyzes 2004 data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Internal Revenue Service, finding that 90.7 percent of all uninsured children, including 89.4 percent of those who qualify for Medicaid or SCHIP, live in families who file federal income tax forms. The report finds that if states were able to use income tax forms to enroll children into these programs, the proportion of uninsured but eligible children who could be reached substantially exceeds the number who could be reached by other outreach and enrollment strategies.
The report also proposes policy recommendations for covering uninsured children in families who file tax forms. This includes changing federal income tax forms so parents can identify their uninsured children and request coverage, and allowing states to enroll uninsured children into health coverage if their tax information shows they qualify.
An amendment successfully offered by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) during the CHIP reauthorization debate last week added some of the most important of these provisions to the Senate version of the legislation. In particular, it allows states to provide Medicaid and SCHIP to uninsured children based on state income tax information. If passed as part of the final SCHIP package, and implemented effectively by most states, this provision could mean reaching and enrolling millions more uninsured, eligible children into these critical health programs. The House of Representatives stands poised to pass this legislation as early as Wednesday of this week.