WASHINGTON, DC – Today, a new report has revealed the importance of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and Medicaid to children that are chronically ill. Released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the report specifically finds that more than one in three American children with chronic illness are enrolled in one of these programs, which provide the consistent access to care needed to combat these diseases.
Moreover, the report has found that children are three times more likely to visit a doctor’s office in the course of a year than uninsured children.
“This report highlights many reasons why SCHIP and Medicaid are absolutely essential for children whose parents cannot afford health insurance. But the most noteworthy finding is that children with chronic illnesses desperately need health coverage,” said Bruce Lesley, President of First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization.
Specific findings indicate that children with insurance are more likely to receive routine care and chronically ill children without health insurance are far more likely to delay or forgo care desperately needed. Further, children with chronic conditions enrolled in SCHIP or Medicaid are more likely to have a personal doctor than those who are uninsured. The report also finds that programs such as SCHIP and Medicaid enable kids with special health needs to receive needed mental health care.
Lesley added: “Across the nation, we are seeing stories that affirm this report’s findings. Last year, Devonte Johnson, a young boy from Texas, lost his Medicaid coverage due to bureaucratic errors. He later died from untreated kidney cancer. Following his death, a concerted effort in Texas by children’s advocates, schools, and hospitals to simplify enrollment has led to an enrollment increase of over 108,000 children in the past several months.
“Unfortunately, the Bush Administration is moving in the opposite direction by implementing policies designed to cut children off or limit coverage of children in 24 states. In just three days, a directive doing so will be placed into effect. Moreover, both the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office and General Accounting Office have deemed the directive to be illegal, triggering numerous lawsuits across the country.
“Our government should be working to ensure that there are no more Devonte Johnson stories, instead of undermining states and frivolously defending these lawsuits.
“We applaud California, which has chosen to ignore this regulation and keep kids covered. We encourage other states to do the same, and choose to protect the health and well being of their states’ children.
“As children go back to school, we encourage state organizations and schools to ensure that all eligible children are enrolled in health insurance coverage. If kids are eligible for Head Start or school lunch programs, they are, by definition, eligible for enrollment in either Medicaid or SCHIP. As adults, we should do everything they can to make sure kids have the coverage they need.”
Entitled A Needed Lifeline: Chronically Ill Children and Public Health Insurance Coverage was released today by RWJF to kick off its annual Cover the Uninsured Back-to-School Campaign, a nationwide effort to enroll eligible children in public health coverage programs during the back-to-school season.