RICHMOND, Va. - By not expanding Medicaid to cover working poor adults, Virginia also is shortchanging thousands of children, according to a new study.
Georgetown researchers looked at families in the coverage gap, making too much money to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford insurance on the federal exchange. They found a third of the adults are parents with dependent children, and nearly two thirds of those parents work outside the home.
Widow Melyssa Dove of Culpepper says her lack of insurance makes the financial situation for her and her three young sons particularly fragile. She says she ended up with a big emergency-room bill when she got sick last summer.
"That bill is unresolved," says Dove. "I've gone through the hospital system trying to get help, and so it's very frustrating. It's been very frustrating dealing with the system."
According to the study, children can be all but locked out of the health-care system if their parents don't have insurance and getting their parents insured can improve the children's health care and quality of life.
In much of the country, the portion of children with access to the health-care system has increased sharply since the passage of the Affordable Care Act. But while Virginia was once a leader in that, the portion in the state actually has fallen a little. Ashley Everette is a policy analyst with Voices for Virginia¹s Children.
"While many other states saw decreases in the rate of uninsured kids, Virginia's rate has worsened," says Everette. "We also know when parents are uninsured, their ability to care for their kids and provide financially can be compromised."
Currently about 100,000 Virginia children lack health insurance. Medicaid expansion would cover 400,000 adults, and likely bring thousands of the children into the system as well.
For Dove, insurance issues make it harder for her while she finishes her nursing degree. She says some years ago she survived thyroid cancer, but now she can barely afford the thyroid medicine she needs let alone tests her doctors say she should have.
"Am I going to have the scans and rack up a $6,000 hospital bill? Or am I just going to hope I'm OK," she says. "You cross your fingers and say, 'I hope I don't get sick.'"
Republicans in the General Assembly refuse the Medicaid expansion offered under the Affordable Care Act, arguing Medicaid should be reformed first.
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CLARIFICATION: We updated language to clarify the timing for when the study's authors began tracking certain outcome measures for children within the foster care system. (9:30 a.m. CST, Nov. 22, 2024)
This Saturday is National Adoption Day and the latest findings showed Minnesota has made progress in helping kids in the foster care system secure a better future.
Aaron Sojourner, labor economist at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, helped lead a study of reforms Minnesota approved in 2015. He said states often provide financial support to children in foster care but support ends when a child is adopted or placed in a kin guardianship.
Minnesota decided to continue payments to households who take a child in permanently. Sojourner pointed out three years after foster cases started, positive outcomes became clear.
"The kids were scoring much higher on standardized achievement tests," Sojourner reported. "They were experiencing less turnover in schools and school instability."
He noted the incentives also boosted the chances of kids age 6 and older exiting the foster care system and moving into permanent home settings by 29%. Sojourner added while the results are encouraging, it is just one aspect of the child welfare landscape. Other research has shown racial disparities in Minnesota's foster care system, especially when looking at reducing entry rates.
Sojourner stressed if state lawmakers revisit the extended monthly payments in budget talks, they will need to realize the long-term payoff from these investments.
"The state is paying more money now but they're going to reap the benefits down the road," Sojourner contended. "In terms of increased earnings and employment."
His team's study said prolonged exposure to foster care is tied to poor transitions into adulthood, including homelessness.
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Nearly one in four Kentucky kids has experienced at least two Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, including abuse, neglect or household dysfunction, according to the latest Kids Count County Data Book.
Experts said the findings should prompt policymakers to better measure risk and pave the way for prevention.
Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates, said the impact of ACEs on children can leave a lifetime imprint.
"When we think about Kentucky in 20 years, data around ACEs today is going to be a leveraged factor that we're going to be seeing the results of," Brooks projected.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ACEs trigger a toxic stress response in the body, which can change brain development and can lead to chronic health problems, mental illness and substance use disorders in adulthood.
Mentorship, guidance and support from adults and community members can help foster positive childhood experiences and buffer the impact of ACEs.
Aleah Stigall, a student at Boyle County High School, said a network of mentors participating in pageantry has helped her cope with loneliness.
"I was able to gain a lot of mentors," Stigall explained. "Some I like to even call my sisters, because of how they've impacted me and really show me what a true titleholder looks like and how you can make a strong impact on your community."
The findings also show more families are transient and struggling to stay housed. Brooks explained the state has seen significant increases in rental cost burdens.
"That eight-year-old little girl going to school has inevitably heard her mom and dad worrying about, are they going to get evicted, and are the lights going to stay on?" Brooks observed. "I don't think any of us can fully measure the impact it has on that little kid."
According to the research, Kentucky is short around 200,000 housing units. And between 2018 and 2022, 44% of Kentucky households spent 30% or more of their income on rent and utilities. In 20 counties, residents' rental cost-burden rates have reached 50%.
Disclosure: Kentucky Youth Advocates/Kids Count contributes to our fund for reporting on Budget Policy and Priorities, and Children's Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
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A new annual report shows New York City has more than 146,000 homeless students.
The Advocates for Children of New York report finds this is an increase from last year when more than 119,000 students were homeless. It also finds more than half of students were temporarily sharing housing with others, while 41% lived in shelters.
Jennifer Pringle, director of Project LIT with Advocates for Children of New York, says the city can help these students by addressing transportation delays.
"Roughly 40% of students in shelters are placed in a different borough from where they go to school, which means that students in temporary housing often face long commutes and are disproportionately impacted by busing delays," she said.
Other recommendations include eliminating the 60-day shelter limits and addressing shortages in staff supporting students in temporary housing. But, Pringle notes there's work the state can do too. More than 115 groups want the state to add a weight for students in temporary housing as part of the school funding formula re-evaluation.
The biggest challenge to implement these recommendations is political will, although they have broad support. But, student homelessness has been a long-standing issue for the city. This is the ninth year in a row New York City's homeless student population has included more than 100,000 students. There are many reasons students become homeless.
"Certainly we know there's a growing housing-affordability crisis," she continued. "Families indicate that domestic violence is one leading driver of family homelessness. And then also we have immigrant families, newcomers to the city as well, who are in temporary housing."
Living in temporary housing significantly impacts students' education. The report finds most students in either temporary housing or a shelter were chronically absent. It also notes their English Language Arts proficiency was 20% lower than students in permanent housing.
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