09.21.06

Cantwell Introduces Legislation to Deliver Health Coverage to 70,000 Uninsured Washington Children

WASHINGTON, DC – Thursday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) introduced legislation to provide health care coverage to as many as 70,000 Washington children who are currently uninsured. By freeing up additional State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) dollars, Cantwell’s bill would help Washington expand coverage to more children in need. SCHIP is a federal program that helps states cover uninsured low-income children from families with incomes above Medicaid eligibility levels. However, due to SCHIP rules that needlessly punish states leading the way in covering uninsured children, Washington state has been forced to turn back $191 million in federal funds over the past 10 years. Of the 100,000 uninsured children in Washington, 70 percent who are not enrolled in Medicaid or SCHIP but are eligible could get coverage under Cantwell’s bill.

“Without this much-needed change, thousands of children will continue to be punished for our state’s work as a leader in expanding coverage,” said Cantwell. “This program was created to help these children, and we have a responsibility to clear the road blocks that are keeping states from getting them covered. Far too many children are still going without health insurance, preventative care, and regular checkups. My proposal will keep more children healthy, keep health care costs down in the long-run, and deliver health coverage to as many as 70,000 uninsured children in our state.”

“The legislation introduced today by Senator Cantwell guarantees that Washington will not be penalized for steps taken a decade ago to ensure that eligible children have access to health care,” said Governor Christine Gregoire. “She has been a champion for Washington in the U.S. Senate, and a partner with me, in working to bring Washington a step closer to our goal to cover all children by 2010.”

SCHIP, created in 1997, allows Washington to use program funds to cover children from families living on 250 percent of the poverty level or less who were not already eligible for health coverage at the time of SCHIP’s enactment. Because Washington had found a way to use Medicaid dollars to cover some children from families at up to 200 percent of the poverty level before the enactment of SCHIP, the program’s rules prevent Washington from using its allocation to cover the thousands of remaining uninsured low-income children who would have otherwise been eligible.

In 2002, Cantwell worked with the Senate Finance Committee to allow Washington to use a portion of its allocation to cover children from Medicaid-eligible families living at or below 200 percent of the poverty level. Before this fix, Washington was only able to use a small portion of its SCHIP funds. Thanks to the fix, Washington has been able to use an additional $47.3 million in SCHIP funds, but the state has still been forced to return $191 million during the 10 years since the program’s creation.

To help states like Washington use even more of their full SCHIP allotment and cover greater numbers of uninsured children, Cantwell introduced legislation Thursday that would allow states to use an unlimited portion of their SCHIP funds to cover Medicaid-eligible children. This would prevent states from being punished for their own efforts to expand coverage prior to the enactment of SCHIP. Because the federal matching rate for SCHIP in Washington state is higher than for Medicaid—65 percent compared to 50 percent—allowing SCHIP funds to be used to cover Medicaid eligible children also frees up more state dollars to expand the number of children covered. The legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD).

In most states, SCHIP funds can be used to cover targeted low-income children from families living at or below 200 percent of the poverty level. In the case of states like Washington where the applicable Medicaid income level for children is at or above 200 percent of the poverty level, the upper income limit for SCHIP benefits may be raised by an additional 50 percent. Washington state covers children through its SCHIP program at up to 250 percent of the poverty level. Currently, there are 11,000 children enrolled in the state’s SCHIP program.

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