Today, Rep. Ed Perlmutter joined a majority of the House of Representatives in reauthorizing the bipartisan Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
CHIP was created in 1997 to provide health care coverage for children in families who earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to afford private insurance. Over the last ten years, 6.6 million children nationwide have enrolled in CHIP. Nationwide, the bill will provide health care coverage for more than 10 million children.
“This program holds so much promise for helping 60,000 uninsured children in Colorado obtain critical health insurance,” said Rep. Ed Perlmutter. “This bill gives states the resources and incentives necessary to reach millions of the lowest-income uninsured children who are eligible for, but not enrolled in, the program. Plain and simple, this bill helps those who are interested in helping themselves.”
Provisions of the bill include:
Quality dental benefits to all children enrolled in CHIP.
State-based allotments that are responsive to state demographic and national spending trends to ensure that states facing a funding shortfall and meeting enrollment goals will receive an adjustment payment to make sure that no child who is eligible for Medicaid or CHIP is denied coverage or placed on a waiting list.
Provisions putting the lowest-income children first in line by phasing in new requirement for coverage of low-income children as a condition of receiving CHIP funding.
$100 million in grants for new outreach activities to states, local governments, schools, community-based organizations, safety-net providers and others.
A new quality child health initiative to develop and implement quality measures and improve state reporting of quality data.
“We cannot continue to ask insured individuals to absorb the cost of emergency room care for these children. In this great country, we value our children and their health, and we must keep that as a top priority. This bill upholds those values. I urge the President to put aside politics, act responsibly and sign this bill that will provide the hope and promise of a healthy future to millions of children in our nation,” stated Perlmutter.
