There are 6.2 million uninsured
students in the United States.
AASA, The School Superintendents Association, and The
Children’s Defense Fund have partnered to enroll eligible students in
Medicaid, the state Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and other health
coverage with the goal of ensuring all children are in school and ready to
learn, as well as enrolling undocumented children. The current focus is on
Texas and California—two states with the largest number of uninsured children.
Sharon
Adams Taylor(AASA) sporting t-shirt from Mountain View School District (Lillian
Maldonado French, superintendent) on what it means to be healthy. Last line
reads, "I have health coverage."
On December 2, 2015, leaders from four school districts
convened in California to discuss their role in health care coverage enrollment
and outreach.
- Compton Unified School District (CA)
- El Rancho Unified School District (CA)
- Lynwood Unified School District (CA)
- Mountain View School District (CA)
The
California site visit featured a superintendent panel. Pictured from left to right Supt. Paul Gothold
(Lynwood Unified School District), Sharon Adams-Taylor (AASA), Asst. Supt.
Gudiel Crosswaithe (Lynwood Unified School District), and Martin Galindo (El
Rancho School District).
Schools have played a major role in reducing the amount of
uninsured students in the United States—1 million more children were covered in
2014 than in 2013. In California, the state legislature passed Assembly Bill2706,
which requires school districts to provide families information on health care
coverage. The four school districts are models to other districts in
California, on how to increase the participation rates in enrolling children in
health coverage programs.
Kathleen
King, Deputy Director of Health Policy, Children's Defense Fund presents the
Medicaid/ CHIP participation rates.
Learn more about our current work: All Healthy Children: A School-Based Approach To Children’s Health Coverage
Read about our site visit to Texas in Late October 2015