Kentucky Insures Greater Share of Children Than Nation

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Sep 22nd, 2009

Kentucky Insures Greater Share of Children Than Nation

The Courier Journal reports that Kentucky has provided health insurance for a greater share of its children than Indiana or the nation as a whole, according to new U.S. Census Bureau data.

Ninety-three percent of the children in Kentucky had health insurance, greater than Indiana’s 82 percent and higher than the national average of 90 percent, the Census figures showed.

Kentucky in recent years has sought to enroll more children in government-sponsored Medicaid and the Kentucky Children’s Health Insurance Program (KCHIP). KCHIP provides free or low cost health insurance to children whose families earn up to double the federal poverty guidelines ($44,100 annually for a family of four).

Last year, Gov. Steve Beshear announced an initiative to enroll an estimated 67,000 eligible children statewide. Kentucky Voices for Health and other child health advocates had previously called for changes in KCHIP to enroll more children. (For more details on KVH’s postion, read the August 2008 issue brief Better Health Coverage for Children: Small Changes Mean Big Improvement.)

Read the full Courier-Journal story here.

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