skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report: Uninsured Rate for Kids Growing Faster in Certain States

play audio
Play

Monday, March 15, 2021   

MADISON, Wis. -- A new report shows states that have resisted Medicaid expansion are putting kids at risk because not as many families are accessing consistent health care.

Wisconsin is among those states, but expansion supporters hope the new stimulus bill will result in action.

According to the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, Wisconsin's rate of uninsured children is at 3.8%, which is below the national average.

William Parke-Sutherland, health policy analyst for Kids Forward, said Wisconsin is in danger of losing ground to other states that have warmed up to the idea of using federal funds from the Affordable Care Act to expand their programs.

"We are sort of an outlier state as far as having a pretty good rate for kids' coverage and being a non-expansion state," Parke-Sutherland observed. "But that just means we could be doing better if we expanded Badger Care."

Wisconsin's number of uninsured kids has crept up in recent years, now standing at 53,000.

GOP leaders say they'll reject the latest plan from Gov. Tony Evers to expand Badger Care, noting the state doesn't have as many gap issues, while expressing concerns about federal funds drying up.

But supporters point to the stimulus package signed by President Joe Biden, which includes a new financial boost for Medicaid programs.

The package would pay each state's 10% share of the Medicaid costs for the next two years, and give them additional money to cover people who are uninsured.

Adam Searing, health-policy research professor at the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families and the report's lead author, said this might be the incentive needed to get more states to expand their programs.

"It'll be a game-changer for any state that's interested in expanding," Searing contended. "Whether it's enough for the states that have really dug in and said, 'We don't want to expand,' I don't know. But I think it'll spur a lot of debate."

Overall, the report said between 2016 and 2019, the child uninsured rate in non-expansion states grew nearly three times as fast as in expansion states.

Health policy experts say if programs for adults are expanded, it's likely that their kids will become enrolled as well, resulting in healthier outcomes.

Disclosure: Georgetown University Center for Children and Families contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, and Health Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021