 "We believe this acknowledgment from the federal government proves
that Illinois is a national leader in ensuring that all children
have access to quality medical care. We will use this money to
further implement enhancements to our programs," said Stacey Solano,
spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family
Services.Solano said there aren't any specific plans for the
money, yet.
The $14.9 million injection of cash into the state's Medicaid
system -- a joint state-federal program that provides health
insurance mostly for pregnant women and children in low-income
families -- comes six months before the end of federal stimulus
dollars that have helped keep the system above water for the past
two years.
Medicaid, along with other health care programs, makes up about a
third of Illinois' current budget. During the past month, lawmakers
in the state have been holding hearings to discuss reforms to
Medicaid that could rein in costs.
Changes talked about include tightening the process for checking
a child's eligibility by making guardians come into a health care
and human services office to register. Another reform would end a
system where people are annually re-enrolled by not mailing back a
questionnaire, or passive enrollment.
If either of these changes were in place this year, the state
would have been bumped out of the running for the grants.
"There is the potential for Medicaid reforms to affect our
eligibility next year; however, it's still too early to speculate,"
Solano said.
Illinois is one of 15 states that will share a $206 million pot
from the federal government for improving the number of eligible
children enrolled in Medicaid. The amount of money a state receives
is determined by a formula set out by the 2009 Children's Health
Insurance Program Reauthorization legislation, which also funds the
bonuses.
Monday's "announcement highlights the ongoing and committed
efforts by states to improve access to health coverage programs and
take the aggressive steps necessary to enroll eligible children,"
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a
written statement.
"Their actions reflect President Obama's serious commitment to
assuring that our country's children get the health care they need,"
Sebelius said in the statement. "These performance bonuses
demonstrate our support for the effective strategies these states
have undertaken."
[to top of second column] |
In order to get a bonus, an applying state had to streamline its
enrollment and renewal processes and show a significant increase in
the number of children in their Medicaid program during the past
year.
For its part, Illinois approved a plan that loosened eligibility
for All Kids -- the state's children's insurance program that
includes those in Medicaid. The legislation, which goes online Jan.
1, ends a state requirement that a child be kicked out of the
program for at least three months after their guardian misses a
premium payment.
On the enrollment side, the state signed up 37,359 children more
than the baseline set for 2010, according to Health and Human
Services.
The number of children in Illinois hasn't increased that much,
and the percentage of uninsured children has actually gone down
since 2006. However, the number enrolled in Medicaid went from 25.5
percent in 2006 to 32.4 percent in 2009, according to the Kaiser
Family Foundation.
The shift comes mainly from children moving from private
insurance to Medicaid.
Illinois also received a grant last year, pulling in $9.1
million.
Other states receiving a bonus are Alabama, Alaska, Colorado,
Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico,
Ohio, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By ANDREW THOMASON]
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