Illinois Academy of Family Physicians joins endorsers of Gov.
Blagojevich's
All Kids plan
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[OCT. 22, 2005]
CHICAGO -- The Illinois Academy of Family
Physicians on Friday endorsed Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich's landmark All
Kids proposal that would make Illinois the only state in the nation
to provide affordable, comprehensive health insurance for every
child in the state. The Illinois Academy of Family Physicians, a
professional medical society that represents 2,100 practicing family
physicians throughout Illinois, joins more than 400 organizations
representing medical facilities, doctors, nurses, educators, labor,
child advocates and clergy that have endorsed the governor's plan
since he introduced it two weeks ago.
"Many family physicians
are part of the safety net which provides care to those who need it,
regardless of their ability to pay," said Fredric D. Leary, M.D.,
president of the physicians, in a statement. "The governor's All
Kids plan will provide stability and peace of mind for parents so
their children can get the care they need and deserve. It will also
help physicians meet the needs of those children."
"Family
physicians know firsthand how important health care is for
children," Blagojevich said. "I am so pleased that the Illinois
Academy of Family Physicians will be joining with us in the effort
to make sure each and every child in Illinois has access to the
health care they need and deserve."
In Illinois, 253,000 children are without health insurance. More
than half of Illinois' uninsured children come from working and
middle-class families who earn too much to qualify for programs like
KidCare, but not enough to afford private health insurance. The
governor's program would make comprehensive health insurance
available to children, with parents paying monthly premiums and
co-payments for doctor's visits and prescription drugs at affordable
rates.
Senate President Emil Jones and House Speaker Michael J. Madigan
are the lead sponsors of legislation creating the All Kids health
insurance program and have vowed to push for its passage during the
upcoming fall veto session so the program can be up and running by
July 1, 2006. The organizations vowed to help the governor build
support to pass his All Kids plan and to help enroll children in the
plan, should it pass.
Based on adjusted census data from 2003, approximately 253,000
children in Illinois do not have health insurance. Twelve percent of
children in Cook County, the state's most populated county, are
uninsured. In Pulaski County, at the southern tip of Illinois,
nearly 15 percent of children lack health coverage. In St. Clair
County, 9.3 percent of children do not have health insurance. In
Sangamon County, home to Illinois' capitol, 8.6 percent of kids are
not insured. Even in suburban DuPage County, one of the 25
wealthiest counties in the United States, 7.2 percent of children
have no health insurance.
The governor's All Kids program would offer children access to
comprehensive health care, including doctor's visits, hospital
stays, prescription drugs, vision care, dental care and medical
devices like eyeglasses and asthma inhalers.
Research shows that uninsured children suffer because they do not
have access to adequate medical care. For example:
The Kaiser Family Foundation found that uninsured children
are 70 percent less likely than children with insurance to
receive medical care for conditions like ear infections and 30
percent less likely to receive medical attention when they are
injured.
A National Health Interview Survey found that 59 percent of
uninsured children did not see a doctor for a checkup in the
past year and 38 percent of children have no regular place to go
for medical care. These factors put uninsured children at higher
risk for hospitalization or missed diagnoses of serious
conditions.
Participants in the new program will pay monthly premiums and
co-payments for doctor's visits and prescriptions, but unlike
private insurance that is too expensive for so many families, the
rates for All Kids coverage will be based on a family's income. The
state is able to offer All Kids insurance coverage at much lower
than market rates for middle-income families by leveraging the
significant negotiating and buying power it already has through
Medicaid.
For example, a family with two children that earns between
$40,000 and $59,999 a year will pay a $40 monthly premium per child
and a $10 co-pay per physician visit. A family with two children
that earns between $60,000 and $79,999 will pay a $70 monthly
premium per child and a $15 co-pay per physician visit. However,
there will be no co-pays for preventative care visits, such as
annual immunizations and regular checkups and screenings for vision,
hearing, appropriate development or preventative dental. These
premiums for middle-income families are significantly more
affordable than typical private insurance premiums of $100 to $200 a
month, or $2,400 per child annually.
The state will cover the difference between what parents
contribute in monthly premiums and the actual cost of providing
health care for each child, expected to be $45 million in the first
year, with savings generated by implementing a primary care case
management model for participants in the state's FamilyCare and All
Kids health care programs. Participants will choose a single primary
physician who will manage their care by ensuring they get
immunizations and other preventative health care services and avoid
unnecessary emergency room visits and hospitalizations. Patients
with chronic conditions like asthma or diabetes will have a single
care manager to make sure they are getting the treatments and
ongoing care they need to avoid acute care. Primary care physicians
will make referrals to specialists for additional care or tests as
needed. By ensuring patients get adequate preventative care on the
front end, fewer people will need expensive specialized care or
emergency care for critical conditions.
Twenty-nine other states -- including North Carolina, New York,
Texas, Pennsylvania and Louisiana -- have realized significant
savings by using this model for their Medicaid programs. Based on
independent analyses, the Department of Healthcare and Family
Services estimates the state will save more than $56 million in the
first year by implementing the primary care case management model in
all state health programs but those that serve seniors and the
blind.
The full statement of support from the Illinois Academy of Family
Physicians follows:
The Illinois
Academy of Family Physicians (IAFP), representing over 2,100
practicing family physicians throughout Illinois, is pleased that
the Blagojevich administration has proposed a system to provide all
Illinois children with health care insurance.
Many family
physicians are part of the safety net which provides care to those
who need it, regardless of their ability to pay. The Governor's All
Kids plan will provide stability and peace of mind for parents so
their children can get the care they need and deserve. It will also
help physicians meet the needs of those children.
The American
Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) has a proposal for ensuring
health care coverage for all U.S. residents (http://www.aafp.org/x13723.xml).
The principles of the All Kids program meet our goals for providing
affordable basic services for children.
We look forward to collaborating with
the Governor, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, and
the General Assembly to work out the details of the All Kids
program.
Our hope is that
the final legislation and rule-making will ensure that all children
have a family physician or pediatrician as the primary care
provider. The Illinois Academy of Family Physicians also will work
with all the interested parties to ensure that this new system meets
the needs of the physicians who will be entrusted with the care of
these precious patients.
As an organization,
IAFP remains true to our principles of high-quality comprehensive
care for our patients. In that mission, one of our prime tenets has
always been access to care – and All Kids offers improved access for
children in Illinois.
-- Fredric D.
Leary, M.D., Illinois Academy of Family Physicians president
