The State Children's Health Insurance Program, SCHIP, was established as part of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (Title XXI of the Social Security Act). Over the next 10 years, SCHIP will provide approximately $40 billion in federal grants to states for health insurance coverage. Each state is free to design its own approach in providing healthcare. If states fail to utilize SCHIP funds available, future grants will be reduced.
Despite this program, more than 11.3 million children are currently without health insurance. In Connecticut alone, approximately 90,000 children remain uninsured who may be eligible for free or reduced cost health insurance. Extensive research, outreach, and advocacy have improved the enrollment status of Connecticut children. Although enrollment has increased, the retention rate of those already enrolled has been noted to decrease. It is speculated that a large portion of this is attributable to the necessary re-enrollment.
The goal of this project is to evaluate the re-enrollment process of the Connecticut HUSKY program, and its comparisons to other states' programs. Using income data, we aim to assess whether the income of those who would qualify for HUSKY varies enough to warrant yearly reassessment. In addition, this project attempts to identify trends in the characteristics of people who are dropped from HUSKY at reassessment, comparing the retention rate of HUSKY to other states with similar programs.
Keywords: Access to Health Care, Children's Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.