Sick kids treated more with state health insurance
By The Associate Press
Friday, Aug 15, 2008
PRINCETON, N.J. — A new, nationwide study says chronically ill children enrolled in state-subsidized insurance programs or Medicaid get about the same access to care as children with private insurance.
The study from New Jersey-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation also says children without any type of health insurance are less likely to be treated for chronic conditions, such as asthma or diabetes.
Foundation president and CEO Risa Lavizzo-Mourey says forgoing treatment puts sick children at higher risk for hospitalization and increases health costs down the road.
In Nebraska, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP, is called Kids Connection. According to the report, Kids Connection covers about 15,000 Nebraska children who have chronic medical conditions.
