Medicaid and SCHIP and Child Health

1
Medicaid and SCHIP and Child Health

• Group V

2
Problem Statement

• Health insurance leads to improved outcomes for
  children.
• Children from many low income families do not
  have health insurance.
• 5 million children are served by SCHIP.
• 3 million more could be on SCHIP.
• SCHIP will expire in 2007.

3
Background and Rationale

• Since 1997, SCHIP was implemented to expand
  insurance coverage to more low income American
  children.
• To ensure that SCHIP is reauthorized for those 5
  million children and expand it to the remaining
  3 million children who are eligible but lack
  health insurance.

4
Features

• Reauthorize SCHIP for another 10 yrs
• Maintain federal/state partnership
• Increase annual allocation from 5 billion/yr,
  indexing to CPI
• Instruct CMS to build in quality measurements and
  public reporting requirements
• Mandate that new waivers not cover childless
  adults
• Establish a bipartisan commission including
  stakeholders to reevaluate formula for
  distributing grants and redistributing unused
  funds
• Encourage demo projects to enhance enrollment

5
Stakeholders

• Who will support this plan?
• Children, families, their advocates
• State and county government and officials
• NGA, NASHPE
• Health providers and hospitals
• Organizations representing providers Am Acad of
  Peds, Am Nurses Assoc, Natl Assoc of Childrens
  Hospitals, etc
• Who will oppose it?
• Budget hawks
• People who think that plans been expanded
  inappropriately/want to make sure that limit plan
  to original beneficiaries
• Support unclear
• State and county government and officials
• Employers (Walmart)
• PhARMA
• Private health insurance companies
• State and federal taxpayers (individuals and
  associations)

6
Strategy 1

• Coalition Building
• Family and consumer advocacy groups
• Health professionals
• State organizations NGA
• Business Insurance, Associations
• Potential lead organization American Academy of
  Pediatrics

7
Strategy 2

• Find champions-
• Senate
• Hatch, Rockefeller, Kennedy (originators of
  legislation)
• Baucus, Grassley of Finance
• House
• Ways and Means- Clay Shaw (R)
• Energy and Commerce
• State
• Local

Coalition Building
8
Strategy 3

• Mobilize support
• Develop talking points/consistent message
• Organize briefings
• Visits to Hill and Local offices
• Renewed coverage for underinsured children