Wendy Lazarus Responds to California Governor's 2015-16 Budget Proposal

Wendy Lazarus Responds to California Governor’s 2015-16 Budget Proposal

SANTA MONICA, CA (January 9, 2015) – In response to California Governor Jerry Brown’s Budget Proposal, Wendy Lazarus, Founder and Co-President of The Children’s Partnership, released the following statement:

“We appreciate the Governor’s continuing commitment to provide health care coverage for low-income families across California. This budget recognizes that as more children and their parents gain coverage through health care reform, our state needs to invest at necessary levels. Because half of California’s children receive their health care through Medi-Cal, it is critical to ensure it is a robust program that offers adequate reimbursement to participating providers and sufficient networks.

 While California has wisely expanded the number of families covered by Medi-Cal, we need to ensure these parents and children can receive quality and timely care. We are very concerned that the budget does not address California’s outdated and inadequate provider rates when our state already has one of the lowest Medicaid payment rates in the country. We urgently need to incentivize doctors and dentists to participate in the program and serve low-income families.

The Governor also failed to provide assurances that he will facilitate health coverage enrollment for those who are now eligible under President Obama’s recent immigration status Executive Order. When parents get health coverage, their children are much more likely to be enrolled. Studies have found that children of undocumented immigrants are twice as likely to lack health insurance as children born to citizen parents. This results in children going without essential preventive services and other necessary health care.

We hope today’s budget proposal signals the beginning of an ongoing discussion of the need to provide health coverage for all Californians, regardless of immigration status. It is time our leaders join together to take more proactive measures that prioritize the health and well-being of all of our children.”

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