Issues

November enrollment for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) reached a new high with 321,341 children receiving health insurance.  That's an increase of 21,000 children from October's enrollment.

CHIP provides health care coverage to children of low-income, working families, many of whom do not receive health care coverage through work and are unable to afford to pay for coverage out of pocket.

Coverage includes dental, vision, mental health and substance abuse coverage, chiropractic, skilled nursing facility and tobacco cessation services for children enrolled in CHIP.

The increase in enrollment is due, in part, to a new policy to automatically enroll children into a health plan even if the family has not yet returned a health plan selection.

Texas children enrolled in CHIP and Medicaid have more than doubled since 1999.  One out of every three Texas children is enrolled in one of these state-administered insurance programs.

Today 2.2 million children receive health insurance from Medicaid or CHIP.

The latest census statistics show that the percentage of Texas children without health insurance fell to 19.2 percent in 2005, down from 21.4 percent in 2004.

Health and Human Services (HHSC) Executive Commissioner Albert Hawkins has been actively seeking ways to ensure children enrolled in the program meet the requirements set out in state and federal law, but do not delay coverage for information not directly related to a child's eligibility.  HHSC identified that CHIP lacks the automatic enrollment option that Medicaid clients enjoy.

If a child is determined eligible for CHIP, the family receives a packet of information instructing them to select a health plan and a primary care provider.  Unlike Medicaid where the state automatically assigns the client to a health plan in order not to delay coverage, CHIP coverage was previously dependent upon receiving the health plan selection.

Hawkins has since approved the automatic enrollment option for CHIP and directed staff to enroll children who had otherwise completed the application process, aside from not selecting a health plan, and met all eligibility criteria, thus reducing the administration barriers to enrollment in CHIP and increasing the number of children on the CHIP rolls.

Next year, the CHIP program will offer new coverage through the perinate initiative.  Under the new program, health care coverage will be extended to the unborn child of pregnant women who do not qualify for Medicaid.  Health care coverage, including the costs of labor and delivery, will be explicitly for the unborn child and should greatly reduce the number of costly premature births.

This initiative represented a substantial fiscal savings to Texas and recognizes the life of unborn children. By offering the CHIP perinate program, Texas will be able to draw down more federal matching dollars and reduce uncompensated care for public hospitals and providers.

HHSC estimates 67,000 unborn children will enroll during the first year.  The child will be covered for 12 months, afterward the child could be enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP if the parent is eligible.

For more information about the CHIP program and instructions on how to enroll visit the HHSC web site.