Health insurance prospects for Florida kids are not improving, despite pushes to increase coverage rates in the state.
Florida continues to deny and unenroll children from programs meant for low-income families – despite a federal law prohibiting states from canceling insurance for kids, even if families don’t pay the premium over a 12 month period.
Executive Director of the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families Joan Alker said this is part of a pattern for Florida.
“Unfortunately,” said Alker, “the state is distinguishing itself these days with being one of the most hostile states in the country, if not the most hostile state, to the notion that children should have access to health insurance.”
Florida challenged the continuous coverage law but a federal judge dismissed the case in May. The state had argued that the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid went too far with the law.
The state has also denied coverage in other ways.
During the Medicaid unwinding in 2023, when COVID-related coverage protections were lifted, Florida saw the second-largest decline in the number of children enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program – at a drop of nearly 600,000.
The state’s coverage program for families that don’t qualify for Medicaid is called KidCare.
During the Medicaid unwinding period, families struggled. Mandi Rokx’s two kids were kicked off Medicaid during the unwinding, and she said it took six months to get them coverage from KidCare.
“I tried calling the Department of Children and Families, and I tried calling the health care provider that they were with previously,” said Rokx. “And nobody could give me any answers. And it was kind of one those things where when I would finally get a human being on the phone, I was told that they couldn’t do anything for me. And I spent literal hours on phone calls, which is not easy when you have toddlers.”
Alker said there is a built-in gap in coverage for families who have to switch from Medicaid to KidCare, and that’s unique to Florida.
“This is truly terrible,” said Alker. “You do not want a baby to be uninsured. You do not want any child to have a gap in coverage. It doesn’t matter how long it is – things happen to kids all the time. Parents know this.”
Obstáculos a la salud persisten para los niños en Florida
Las perspectivas de seguro medico para los ninos de Florida no estan mejorando, a pesar de los esfuerzos para aumentar las tasas de cobertura en el estado.
Florida continua negando y cancelando la inscripcion de ninos en programas destinados a familias de bajos ingresos, a pesar de una ley federal que prohibe a los estados cancelar el seguro para ninos, incluso si las familias no pagan la prima durante un periodo de 12 meses.
Joan Alker, directora del Center for Children and Families de la Universidad de Georgetown, dice que esto es parte de un patron en Florida.
“Desafortunadamente, el estado se distingue estos dias por ser uno de los mas hostiles del pais, si no el mas hostil a la idea de que los ninos deberian tener acceso a un seguro medico,” insistio Alker.
Florida impugno la ley de cobertura continua, pero un juez federal desestimo el caso en mayo. El estado habia argumentado que los Centros de Medicare y Medicaid de Estados Unidos fueron demasiado lejos con la ley. El estado tambien ha negado cobertura de otras maneras.
Durante la reduccion de Medicaid en 2023, cuando se levantaron las protecciones de cobertura relacionadas con el COVID, Florida experimento la segunda mayor disminucion en el numero de ninos inscritos en Medicaid y el Programa de Seguro Medico para Ninos, con una caida de casi 600.000.
El programa de cobertura estatal para familias que no califican para Medicaid se llama KidCare. Durante el periodo de reduccion de Medicaid, las familias tuvieron dificultades. Los dos hijos de Mandi Rokx fueron expulsados de Medicaid durante la liquidacion y ella agrega que les tomo seis meses obtener cobertura de KidCare.
“Intente llamar al DCF y al proveedor de atencion medica con el que estaban anteriormente y nadie pudo darme ninguna respuesta. Cuando finalmente consegui hablar por telefono con un ser humano, me dijeron que no podian hacer nada por mi, y pase literalmente horas haciendo llamadas telefonicas, lo cual no es facil cuando tienes ninos pequenos,” enfatizo Rokx.
Alker explica que existe una brecha incorporada en la cobertura para las familias que tienen que cambiar de Medicaid a KidCare, y eso es exclusivo de Florida.
“Esto es realmente terrible. Usted no quiere que un bebe se quede sin seguro. Usted no desea que ningun nino tenga un periodo sin cobertura. No importa cuanto tiempo sea: a los ninos les pasan cosas todo el tiempo. Los padres lo saben,” argumento tambien Alker.
