Child advocates build back better Crucial for UT Kids Health/Public News Service

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah health care reform advocates are lobbying the U.S. Senate to pass the Build Back Better Act.

They say it would improve Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The bill has already been passed in the House.

It would provide 12 months of continuous coverage for Medicaid-eligible children. It would also require states to extend Medicaid postpartum coverage from 60 days to 12 months for new mothers.

Jessie Mandle, deputy director of Voices for Utah Children, said the bill would “ease the barriers” Utah families have faced in insuring their children.

“This will help reverse the trends we’ve seen in terms of loss of insurance for children over the past few years,” Mandle said. “This is truly going to absolutely change the trajectory of children’s health insurance in our state and give children the coverage and care they need to thrive.”

According to Utah CHIP officials, families of four earning $53,000 a year or less are eligible for affordable health coverage under the program. Opponents of the Build Back Better Act say the nearly $2 trillion price tag is too expensive.

Mandle pointed out that Build Back Better would permanently fund CHIP, so it wouldn’t have to be renewed in Congress every few years. It would also make it easier for Utah and other states to expand eligibility.

“Coverage disruptions impact the overall health of children,” Mandle explained. “Having the 12-month continuous eligibility provision in Build Back Better would really be a game-changer for kids here in Utah.”

Joan Alker, executive director of the Center for Children and Families and co-author of the report, found that during the early years of the Trump administration, one in 10 children experienced a lapse in insurance coverage during their lifetime. ‘a year.

“These coverage gaps were more common among Latino and Black children, and 50% of children who had a coverage gap did not see a doctor for the entire year we examined,” reported Alker.

As of May 2021, Utah had enrolled a total of 415,000 people in Medicaid and CHIP, a net increase of 41% since 2013.

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In a letter sent to the Department of Health and Human Services this week, the American Hospital Association and other health care groups asked the agency to extend its public health emergency declaration.

The policy is officially set to expire in about two weeks, and while experts have said it could be extended through the summer, the change is likely to confuse families about their Medicaid or CHIP coverage status. their child.

Julianne Yacovone, director of child health at West Virginians for Affordable Health Care, said changes in income status and other factors that determine eligibility can cause sudden drops in coverage.

“In West Virginia, that could mean thousands of kids could lose their coverage, just because their parents didn’t know about the expiration,” she said. “They may not know what steps they need to take and what information they need to provide to keep that coverage.”

A report from the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families found that millions of children who rely on Medicaid or CHIP may become uninsured if the requirement for continued public health emergency coverage is lifted.

Yacovone said the change could be drastic for some parents, depending on their child’s health needs.

“Things like asthma inhalers can be way out of a person’s price range if they don’t have that coverage,” she said.

Yacovone said she believes West Virginia should work to raise awareness about the end of the public health emergency.

‘They can make the renewal process available online,’ she said, ‘and make it simple and straightforward – say, ‘That’s what we need you to do, so you don’t lose your coverage . “”

A Kaiser Family Foundation report predicted that about 8% of children on Medicaid or CHIP will be excluded from coverage when the emergency ends.

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While Ohio trails the nation in outcomes for older youth in foster care, a new report also suggests there’s reason for hope.

According to the Children’s Defense Fund-Ohio, the state is in the bottom 10 percent nationwide on four measures of well-being for 21-year-olds who were in foster care as teenagers.

Young people in Ohio are less likely to graduate from high school, get a GED, find a job, or enroll in school, and more likely to be involved in the justice system.

Deanna Jones, a licensed social worker and former young adoptee, said she understands the experiences of children in care.

“As a teenager, I definitely felt ignored, undervalued, even silenced about my own situation when I was in care,” Jones recounted. “And there are still those young people who don’t feel heard. Young people need to be heard, and we need to show them that their voice matters.”

The report noted that Ohio has implemented major initiatives to improve outcomes, including the creation of an office of youth ombudsman to investigate complaints. Jones acknowledged that it will give hope to those who have had bad experiences in foster care.

The report also called for better data collection from young people while in care.

Laila-Rose Hudson, a law student at Ohio State University and a former foster child, says data is vital. She explained that the rate of abuse in foster homes in Ohio is less than 1%, which she says cannot be accurate.

“Just my story alone, multiple forms of abuse in multiple different homes over 10 years,” Hudson recalled. “If those numbers were accurate, I’d be a statistical impossibility, so we know those numbers are wrong.”

Instead of using exit interviews to learn more about placement experiences, the research suggested using quarterly youth experience surveys and using the data to identify areas where further investigation is necessary. Ohio’s strengths in the report include measures of permanency, placement stability, and a recent decline in the number of young people aging without support.

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The Texas Freedom Network is calling on people to join a new campaign against what it calls “education censorship” across the state.

The movement, made up of more than a dozen organizations, follows efforts by local and national politicians to limit racial and LGBTQ representation in schools, as part of their own political ambitions.

The group said making education so partisan ignores the needs of children.

Val Benavidez, executive director of the Texas Freedom Network, said students need policies that ensure diverse populations are represented in their school environment.

“Support students by proactively organizing in your local school boards, attending regular meetings, testifying at the state Board of Education,” Benavidez emphasized. “And let your state officials know that you will not tolerate politically motivated bans that attempt to silence our communities.”

Benavidez emphasized that the goal of the “Teach the Truth” campaign is to create communities where everyone feels included, regardless of race or sexuality.

Texas lawmakers have passed bills in recent years restricting discussion of racial history and LGBTQ-related topics in schools.

The coalition argued that removing some books from library shelves ends up making education one-sided and avoiding the truth about difficult topics in order to put some students or their parents more at ease.

Hedreich Nichols, educational consultant and author of children’s books, thinks a little discomfort is necessary for a balanced education.

“We’re doing our students a disservice,” Nichols argued. “Sometimes the truth is uncomfortable; as a parent, I want my son to be able to face uncomfortable truths.”

Ricardo Martinez, executive director of Equality Texas, said his group questioned the Texas Education Agency last fall about various attempts to remove more than 800 books from schools. Some 60% focused on LGBTQ topics, 8% on race, and 13% on sex education.

Martinez sees a longer-term impact on student mental health.

“The young people of Texas see their very humanity challenged, time and time again, by those in charge of their safety and education,” Martinez said.

He added that books and “true history” are important in schools, and said anyone can report concerns about what is happening in their school district on the campaign website.

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