California’s lower-income families may have to pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year for medical health insurance premiums – payments that were waived during the pandemic.
Once the public health emergency subsides, the pandemic exemption will expire – so groups advocating for children and families are calling on Governor Gavin Newsom to include the rewards in his next budget proposal, due by Jan. 10 is to delete.
Fatima Clark, deputy director of health policy at Children Now, said reimbursement of premiums could leave families in trouble with no coverage.
“With no end in sight to this public health crisis, we shouldn’t be preventing families from receiving care,” said Clark. “These are households that have borne the brunt of the pandemic but are still struggling to make ends meet and get food on the table.”
Only three other states require low-income families to pay monthly contributions in their state health insurance programs.
Almost 160,000 pregnant women and families with children received special permits between March and September of this year.
Opponents of permanent waiver cite budgetary concerns. Clark estimated it would cost the state about $ 8 million a year.
More than 450 organizations recently signed a letter calling on the governor to forego doctors’ rewards. Clark said the move would improve access to care for up to 700,000 Californians.
“The health and financial well-being of many low-income families is at risk,” said Clark. “If lawmakers are serious about promoting economic security for families and communities, getting rid of medical rewards next year should be a breeze.”
Last year the state allocated US $ 20 million to provide zero dollar premiums for some health insurance plans in CoveredCA.
Disclosure: Children Now / KIDS COUNT contributes to our child and youth reporting fund. If you would like to support news in the public interest, click here.
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Child advocates hope for big changes in the state care and child protection systems in the new year.
Recent research has revealed a strained care system, mainly due to the opioid crisis and lack of resources.
Marissa Sanders, director of the West Virginia Foster, Adoptive, and Kinship Parents Network, said while state lawmakers recently formed a non-partisan child protection committee, she has seen little movement on the issue since then.
Sanders wants the state to increase accountability and data collection on how many foster parents live in the state and how they can look after children.
“We have a staff shortage at CPS, which is common,” said Sanders. “One of the best ways to alleviate this is to reduce the number of children being taken into care. And in West Virginia, we have the highest number of children per capita in any state in the country, and we are removing more children per capita than any other state. “
According to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, there are currently more than 7,000 West Virginia children living in foster care, and in 2019 West Virginia took 14 out of 1,000 children out of their homes. The national average is three children per 1,000.
Rachel Kinder, FrameWorks director for Mission West Virginia, said that despite the state’s problems and serious concerns about the safety and well-being of children, more and more children are being fostered and not enough adults are caring for them .
“So we just have a growing need for new foster parents,” explains Kinder. “There’s also a kind of cycle in which people become foster parents, and when a child is unable to reunite with their family of origin, those foster parents often adopt. And that diminishes their ability to be foster parents.”
According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 140,000 children lost a caregiver or parent to a pandemic, and it is estimated that some of those children could end up in foster care.
Sanders added that foster care is intended as a temporary intervention, and she believes the state should shift to a model that reinforces the partnership between birth parents and foster parents in order to strengthen a child’s support network.
“Actually, the goal of foster families is always reunification, unless it becomes clear that it is not safe,” said Sanders.
The number of children living with foster parents through government agencies across the country fell by 4% during the pandemic, according to The Imprint publication. In March of last year there were around 402,000 children in foster families across Germany.
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SPOKANE, Washington – It’s National Influenza Vaccination Week, and a Washington doctor highlights the importance of protecting children from the virus this season.
Dr. Melissa Quisano, a family medicine specialist at Kaiser Permanente in Spokane, said the spread of the flu increases in winter when people gather for the holidays.
“Unfortunately, the more we gather in closed rooms, the more we divide our germs,” explained Quisano. “We want to protect ourselves and our loved ones, so it’s definitely important to get these vaccines before you go out with family or even larger crowds.”
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the number of flu vaccinations given to children under four years of age had decreased from previous years. The number of shots in 2020 decreased by almost 14% in children aged six to 23 months and by almost 12% in children aged two to four.
Quisano pointed out that a similar drop in children being vaccinated is likely because families were asked to stay home during the pandemic, noting that she is glad they listened.
“But the unfortunate result of this is that many of these children may have missed their usual health check-ups, the ones we vaccinate and vaccinate with the most,” lamented Quisano. “Many children have also missed their regular vaccinations.”
According to the Washington State Department of Health, routine vaccines like Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough), which are required in the state to enter seventh grade, have decreased by 11% over the past year. In 11- and 12-year-olds, vaccinations for meningococcal disease decreased by more than 8%.
Quisano added that she understands that people have a lot of questions about vaccines.
“I just encourage families to contact their general practitioner with questions,” advised Quisano. “We are happy to answer these questions.”
Disclosure: The Washington Project’s Kaiser Health Plan contributes to our fund for reporting on alcohol and drug abuse prevention, health issues, hunger / nutrition / nutrition, and senior citizens issues. If you would like to support news in the public interest, click here.
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HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania – With children stuck at home at the start of the pandemic, a new report said child abuse cases fell in 2020 to better respond to children’s needs during a public health crisis.
The Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children annual State of Child Welfare report showed nearly 33,000 fewer cases of child abuse or neglect in 2020 than the previous year, a decrease of 22%. But this year the number of investigated and justified cases of abuse was higher than it has been in five years.
Rachel Miller, policy director at Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, said this was a cause for concern.
“When the home stay arrangements were implemented, the children were moved into virtual learning and had less contact with the assigned reporters such as teachers or healthcare professionals,” Miller said. “And we saw a direct correlation with a significant decrease in mandatory reporting trends.”
Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) 2021 data on child abuse reports, investigations, and foster care will not be available until 2022. Miller predicts the state is likely to see an increase in children being fostered or staying in the system longer as a result of mandatory reporting making a comeback.
The report also made policy recommendations, such as investing in the child protection workforce, which had a high turnover due to low wages and burnout exacerbated by the pandemic.
Miller argued that the skilled workers are critical to preventing child abuse and to intervene when abuse is detected.
“Child protection workers are important contributors,” Miller said. “This staff shortage results in workers carrying large numbers of cases where they can barely do the bare minimum, let alone other important outcomes for children such as thorough examinations, prevention of placement and ensuring durability.”
She added that the Pennsylvania Partnerships report was shared with the DHS. Other recommendations included establishing a nationwide case management system and tackling racial inequality in child protection services and foster families.
Disclosure: Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children / KIDS COUNT contributes to our fund for reporting on child problems, early childhood education, education and health issues. If you would like to support news in the public interest, click here.
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