Click HERE to send a letter telling Congress to protect children with diabetes and fund CHIP!
The Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, provides health insurance for 8.9 million children from working families who make too much money to qualify for Medicaid but still cannot afford or access private insurance coverage. (KFF) CHIP is funded with both federal and state dollars, and federal CHIP funding has to be periodically renewed. (Commonwealth) Federal funding for CHIP expired on September 30, after Congress failed to pass any legislation that would reauthorize it. Congress prioritized trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act over the summer instead of passing a reauthorization, despite three-fourths of the public saying it is important for Congress to work on reauthorizing funding for CHIP. (KFF)
Without CHIP, children will suffer.
If CHIP funding is not reauthorized, children from low-income families, including children with diabetes, will lose their health insurance, which could mean losing access to doctor’s visits and prescription medicines. Among other things, CHIP covers primary care services, preventative care services, specialist care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, and dental care. (KFF)
States are planning a variety of responses to CHIP federal funding running out. Most states will face a budget shortfall because they assumed they would have federal CHIP funding when creating their 2018 state budgets. Fourteen states have already reported plans to end coverage for children, and five states will end coverage by the end of January. Seven states reported plans to close new enrollment for children or establish caps on the total number of children that can be enrolled in CHIP. Additionally, several states have reported plans to reduce CHIP coverage for pregnant women. There is no requirement for states to provide CHIP coverage, except where states must maintain CHIP-funded Medicaid expansion coverage under the ACA “maintenance of effort” requirement. (KFF)
We need to tell Congress to provide funding for CHIP.
Click HERE to send letters to your Senators and Representative to tell them to provide funding for CHIP, and to put the needs of children first.