Innovations in Health Reform Updates - The Children's Partnership

California Makes Progress Reducing the Number of Uninsured Children

According to a new report by the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute’s Center for Children and Families, the rate of uninsured children in California declined 1.5 percent between 2009 and 2011, which ranks the state 12th in the nation for the decline in the child uninsured rate.

“This reduction in uninsured children is fantastic news for our state’s children and families, said Wendy Lazarus, Founder and Co-President of The Children’s Partnership. “With the implementation of health care reform just around the corner and our state’s commitment to successfully transition nearly 900,000 children from Healthy Families to Medi-Cal, it is finally within our reach to ensure that every child in California receives high quality health coverage.”

Read more about the effort to insure all of California's children in the joint press release here.

Terms:100% Campaign, California, California Coverage, CHIP/Healthy Families, Medicaid/Medi-Cal, Press Release

Support Letter Urges Governor to Sign SB 970 (de Leon)

The Children's Partnership submitted a letter to Governor Brown, urging his signature of SB 970 (de Leon). SB 970 would integrate the process of applying for health coverage with public programs such as CalFresh and CalWORKS.

Terms:California, California Coverage, Express Lane / ELE, Family-Friendly Enrollment, Health Care/Reform, Letters of Support

Wendy Lazarus on Ensuring Children Not Harmed in Closing Healthy Families Program

California Healthline

Download article here.

Terms:California, California Coverage, CHIP/Healthy Families, Press Clips, Wendy Lazarus

California Budget Deal Delivers Blow to Children's Health; Advocates Vow Vigilance to See that Protections Are Put in Place

Santa Monica, CA, June 27, 2012 -- "Today, California's Legislature, at the urging of Governor Brown, voted to close down the highly successful Healthy Families Program that has helped millions of kids get the health care they need over the past 15 years. The Children's Partnership and 70 other organizations had strongly opposed the close down of Healthy Families which today provides health care to nearly 900,000 children, favoring a phased transition that would protect children's health," says Wendy Lazarus.

Terms:California, California Coverage, Press Release

Kids' Advocates Still Fighting to Save Healthy Families Program

KQED

Wendy Lazarus, co-president of The Children's Partnership, wants lawmakers to stick with their original plan, which would put 200,000 Healthy Families children into Medi-Cal as a test run.

"We believe that by putting added pressure on a very fragile Medi-Cal system right now,” says Lazarus, “that the plan will endanger access to care for as many as 4.5 million kids - so the Healthy Families kids and the children now in Medi-Cal.”