Health Coverage for ALL Children Campaign
Families across the country are watching their health insurance premiums and prescription drug prices skyrocket while insurance claims are denied and services slashed. Right now, the average cost of employee-sponsored family health insurance is $12,680 per year. For an insurance company CEO, that may only be one day’s pay, but it’s 90 percent of the annual salary of a minimum wage worker. That’s why 1 in 16 children and 16,000 pregnant women in California cannot afford health insurance. In 2007, 683,000 California children were uninsured and this number is growthing due to our national economic downturn, struggling state budget and rising health care costs. Many more children are underinsured- they simpley don't have coverage for medical services they need. Far too many California families are forced to choose between paying rent, buying food, and taking their children to the doctor. These are heartbreaking choices for any parent, and no parent should have to choose between food or health care for their children.
Prevention costs far less than illness and primary care doctor visits cost less than visits to the emergency rooms. Access to essential services for children saves both lives and money. Every $1 spent on vaccinations for children saves $16 in later costs to the community. The cost for a child to visit a doctor in the early stages of an asthma attack is about $100, while going to the emergency room to treat full-blown asthma symptoms costs more than $7,300. Parents should have the security of knowing their children can get the care they need when they need it. Yet all too often, a child’s health care depends on which plan covers their family and where they happen to live.
Children deserve real national health care reform. Although President Obama and Congress took a major step forward this year by expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) known as Healthy Families in California, our fragmented and complicated child health care bureaucracy still leaves 5–6 million children uninsured and millions more children underinsured. We need a simplified system that guarantees affordable, comprehensive coverage for every child and pregnant woman in America.
We can solve this problem now and invest in our country’s children and future. As Congress crafts national health reform legislation, it is critical that the following elements are included to ensure health coverage for every child:
· Affordable coverage. Establish a national eligibility floor of at least 300 percent of the federal poverty level for all children and pregnant women, with an affordable buy-in based on a family’s income for those above
that income level.
· Comprehensive Benefits. Guarantee all children access to all medically necessary services to maximize their health and development.
· A Simple and Seamless System. Simplify the application and enrollment process to make it easy for all children to get covered and stay covered. This must include eliminating known barriers to enrollment and instituting automatic enrollment of eligible children.
CDF-California is a Active Member of Health Care for America Now!
The Children’s Defense Fund-California is an active member of a Health Care for America Now (HCAN), a national grassroots campaign of more than 850 organizations representing 30 million people dedicated to winning quality, affordable health care we all can count on in 2009.
CDF-CA has participated in a number of health care events and town halls with HCAN and many more are coming soon. Sign up for CDF-CA email alerts to get more info.
Learn more and view photos from recent HCAN events where CDF-CA was present.
Now is the time to tell Congress that all children need national health care reform!
For the first time in generations, we have a real opportunity to achieve comprehensive health reform in the United States. Congress is meeting and crafting health care reform legislation now. We must all step up and make our voices heard to show Congress why all children and pregnant women need national reform that creates a comprehensive, affordable and seamless public plan option.
We need your help to tell California's 55 Members of Congress to guarantee affordable health coverage for the millions of children who are uninsured and underinsured through natinal health reform for all.
Send an email to your Member of Congress today to help ensure health coverage for all children.
|
