Colorado Leader In Child Health Insurance Coverage

Gov. Bill Ritter today joined U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to announce the availability of new financial resources for organizations that work to ensure children have the health insurance coverage they need. Colorado has been a leader in the effort to provide health insurance coverage to more children.

"We've made covering kids a top priority in Colorado. Working in partnership with community-based organizations like schools, childcare centers and faith-based groups, we have dramatically increased outreach and enrollment efforts and those efforts are paying off," said Gov. Ritter. "Since 2007, we've enrolled 67,000 more children in Medicaid and Colorado¿s Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) - a 27% increase. This grant opportunity will be a great help to states and communities that are working hard to ensure kids and families are getting the health care they need."

Up to $40 million in grants will be available to states, local governments, non-profits and other community organizations to help reach children and families who qualify but are not yet enrolled in Medicaid and State Children¿s Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP). The grants help support President Obama¿s new Children¿s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA), which is aimed at ensuring millions of currently uninsured children across the country get the health care they need.

¿We know there are millions of children who are eligible for coverage but don¿t utilize their state health care programs,¿ said Secretary Sebelius. ¿These grants will help community organizations, tribal organizations, as well as states and local governments reach out to children and families to ensure more children get the health care they need and deserve.¿

Today¿s announcement is the first cycle of outreach funding under CHIPRA. The new law provides a total of $100 million for outreach campaigns aimed at reducing the number of low-income, uninsured children. The grants being solicited today will ultimately total $80 million, with the remaining funds going to other outreach efforts specified by the law.

¿States have been effective in enrolling over 30 million children in Medicaid and more than 7 million children in CHIP, but there are still millions of uninsured, low-income children who are not enrolled in these programs even though they are eligible,¿ said Cindy Mann, the director of the CMS Center for Medicaid and State Operations, who will administer the grants. ¿We are looking forward to innovative grant proposals ranging from grass roots efforts to reach eligible but uninsured children to technology-driven initiatives to modernize and streamline enrollment systems.¿

Applications for the first cycle of funding are available. Applications submitted electronically are due by Aug. 6, 2009. Applications submitted by mail are due by Aug. 10, 2009, and grants will be awarded by Sept. 30, 2009. For more information, contact the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services at mary.greene@cms.hhs.gov.

By Colorado Governor's Office.