Brief Five Things Everyone Should Know about SCHIP
Lisa Dubay, Ian Hill, Genevieve M. Kenney
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This paper examines the State Children's Health Insurance Program on its five-year anniversary. Over two-thirds of states expanded income eligibility to at least 200 percent of poverty, 35 states created separate programs, and states invested unprecedented resources in outreach and streamlined enrollment procedures. SCHIP and Medicaid could cover 84 percent of low-income uninsured children. Following SCHIP, uninsurance has been reduced from 23.3 percent to 17.5 percent for children with incomes between 100 and 200 percent of poverty. For poor children, the uninsurance rate stagnated at 27 percent. Some challenges lie ahead for the program. SCHIP funds have been plentiful to date, but may run short over the next several years. Closing the remaining coverage gaps for children will require a number of Medicaid and SCHIP policy changes, including increasing enrollment efforts and extending eligibility to immigrant children. [View press release]
Research Areas Health and health care Children and youth
Tags Health insurance Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program  State Children's Health Insurance Program Children's health and development Maternal, child, and reproductive health