State Childrens Health Insurance
State Children Health Insurance Programs
In the United States of America the majority of our children are without health insurance, and those that do have health coverage from sources other than State or government health plans still do not receive proper health care. This is generally because co-payments and/or deductibles are more than parents can afford to pay to have their child seen for non-life threatening things such as well check-ups and vaccines. While almost every state offers guaranteed forms of health coverage for all children regardless of age, income or citizenship. The guidelines under which this is applicable propose many hurdles for parents to overcome to obtain this coverage for their children. This is especially difficult when a child is covered by a private health plan and the parents income levels are on the edge of the income qualifications.
For my paper I am primarily focusing on the state of Florida and what it offers in regard to state sponsored children’s health insurance. Currently Florida ranks 49th in the nation in percentage of uninsured children. Under the current most commonly available plans either Medicaid or Florida Kid Care every child has the potential to be covered. However the income guidelines for Medicaid are variable by the age of the child and most children with a working parent over the age of 2 would not qualify. They would be eligible for Florida Kid Care generally at no or little cost but the child must be uninsured to even be considered for this plan. This can be a very difficult position to decide as a parent when insuring their children, if they drop them from private or employer based plans to apply for Florida Kid Care there is an approximate 30-60 day application period that the children would be uninsured for. Programs structured this way seem quite unreasonable to me. I feel that if a parent is providing private insurance to their child and they need a state funded program to pick up the copayments
In the United States of America the majority of our children are without health insurance, and those that do have health coverage from sources other than State or government health plans still do not receive proper health care. This is generally because co-payments and/or deductibles are more than parents can afford to pay to have their child seen for non-life threatening things such as well check-ups and vaccines. While almost every state offers guaranteed forms of health coverage for all children regardless of age, income or citizenship. The guidelines under which this is applicable propose many hurdles for parents to overcome to obtain this coverage for their children. This is especially difficult when a child is covered by a private health plan and the parents income levels are on the edge of the income qualifications.
For my paper I am primarily focusing on the state of Florida and what it offers in regard to state sponsored children’s health insurance. Currently Florida ranks 49th in the nation in percentage of uninsured children. Under the current most commonly available plans either Medicaid or Florida Kid Care every child has the potential to be covered. However the income guidelines for Medicaid are variable by the age of the child and most children with a working parent over the age of 2 would not qualify. They would be eligible for Florida Kid Care generally at no or little cost but the child must be uninsured to even be considered for this plan. This can be a very difficult position to decide as a parent when insuring their children, if they drop them from private or employer based plans to apply for Florida Kid Care there is an approximate 30-60 day application period that the children would be uninsured for. Programs structured this way seem quite unreasonable to me. I feel that if a parent is providing private insurance to their child and they need a state funded program to pick up the copayments
References: Florida KidCare. (2011). Retrieved May 12, 2011, from http://www.floridakidcare.org/ Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration. (2011). Retrieved May 29, 2011, from http://www.fdhc.state.fl.us/Medicaid/MediKids/kidcare.shtml Covering All Florida 's Children with Health Insurance. (2010). Retrieved May 11, 2011, from http://childrensmovementflorida.org/research/health_insurance/health_insurance.pdf Florida Department of Healthcare. (2011). Retrieved May 30, 2011, from http://www.fdhc.state.fl.us/Medicaid/MediKids/kidcare.shtml Children 's Health. (2011). Retrieved May 15, 2011, from http://familiesusa.org/issues/childrens-health/ Hodgetts, C (January 2011). The ACA and Essential Benefits for Children in the Exchanges. Retrieved May 14, 2011, from http://www.healthlaw.org/images/stories/Short_Paper_7_The_ACA_and_Essential_Benefits_for_Children_in _the_Exchanges.pdf Perkins, J, & Coffey, G (March 31, 2010). Patient Protection Act clarifies the meaning of “medical assistance”. Retrieved May 13, 2011, from http://www.healthlaw.org/images/stories/Patient_Protection_Act_Clarifies_the_Meaning_of_Medical_Assi stance.pdf