Legislature can still boost children's health insurance
10 04 08 - 13:27
Published: April 9th, 2008 11:39 PM
Last Modified: April 9th, 2008 04:39 AM
The Senate Finance Committee breathed some life this week into a bill that would expand the state's health care insurance program for low-income children and pregnant women.
The committee finally moved the bill along to the next step.
That's good news, though it will be a stretch to get the bill passed by both houses of the Legislature before adjournment, scheduled Sunday.
Some legislators are reluctant to support the bill because they fear the state won't be able to afford children's health insurance at the increased level at some time in the future.
That would be understandable if Alaska provided children's health insurance at a reasonable level.
It doesn't. Our health insurance program is one of the most stringent in the country. A state as flush as ours should take better care of its children.
Congress created this joint federal-state program to insure children in families with too much income to qualify for Medicaid and too little income to be able to purchase their own private insurance.
In Alaska, the program covers children in families with earnings at 175 percent of the federal poverty level.
Forty-one states include families with earnings at twice the federal poverty level, an aide to Sen. Bettye Davis told the Senate Finance Committee. Davis's bill, which the committee moved out Tuesday, would raise Alaska to the 200 percent level, too.
Angela Liston of Anchorage was one of less than a dozen people testifying at the committee hearing.
"Frankly, as an Alaska resident, it's sort of an embarrassment that Alaska, one of the wealthiest states, has one of the lowest levels of children's health care," she said.
The economic argument against expanding the program is even weaker when you consider that the federal government pays 70 percent of the costs.
It's true that some time in the future, Alaska will likely have to cut back on spending. At that point, the level of children's health insurance will have to be weighed against every other state program.
But that's no reason to deny children who need health care today. We've got the money. We've got no excuses.
BOTTOM LINE: This bill will extend health insurance to more low-income children. It's a no-brainer.