WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Obama unveiled his proposal for comprehensive reform of the nation’s health care system. First Focus, a bipartisan children’s advocacy organization, praised the proposal as a major step forward in advancing health care coverage for all children, by preserving the successful Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) through September 30, 2019 with full funding extended through fiscal year 2016.
First Focus President Bruce Lesley released the following statement:
“After months of policy disputes over kids and health reform, we are pleased that President Obama has sided with children’s advocates, experts, actuaries, and the public on what is best for America’s children – the preservation of the highly successful Children’s Health Insurance Program.
“We are heartened to see the President’s proposal go beyond any measure approved by Congress, as it commits to fully funding CHIP through fiscal year 2016. This will allow states to continue seeking out and enrolling children eligible for the program. And for the foreseeable future, CHIP will continue providing comprehensive benefits to children that specifically address their unique health care needs in the most affordable manner possible.
“When President Obama began the fight to reform our nation’s health care system, he promised that we would ‘fix what’s broken and build on what works.’ We are pleased that President Obama has adhered to that principle, by extending the Children’s Health Insurance Program.”
Reform legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives repeals CHIP entirely, rolling millions of children and pregnant women from CHIP into either Medicaid or the untested “health insurance exchanges.” Senate legislation extended the CHIP program until 2015. The President’s proposal extends CHIP funding for an additional year, until 2016. Additionally, starting in fiscal year 2016, states will receive a 23 percentage point increase to their CHIP matching rate to help them cover children under the program.
The organization also lauded the inclusion of simplified enrollment measures that cut the red tape families currently deal with when enrolling their children in CHIP and/or Medicaid. Further, the proposal allows children to stay on their parents’ health plan through age 26.
This legislation comes on the heels of a First Focus public opinion survey finding that providing health coverage for all children is at the top of the public’s priorities for health care reform.