WASHINGTON, DC - The Subcommittee on Health, chaired by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA), today held a hearing to discuss the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), how the president’s health care law has affected it, and what its future will look like.
Pitts explained, “CHIP has historically enjoyed bipartisan Congressional support, and it is widely seen as providing better care than many state Medicaid programs. Moving forward, Congress should be thoughtful and data-driven in our approach."
Full Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) added, “I am especially proud that because of this program, Michigan has one of the lowest rates of uninsured children in the nation. Funding for CHIP is set to end next year, and while I support extending that funding, it is important that we address several questions about the future of the program to ensure we continue to provide care for the nation’s most vulnerable kids." Michigan currently covers nearly 45,000 children and has provided services to over 300,000 since the program’s inception. The Director of Michigan’s Department of Community Health recently wrote to the committee, “We believe the flexibilities afforded by CHIP have contributed to our success."
Witnesses at today’s hearing discussed the importance of CHIP, addressed concerns about the program, and explained to members how the president’s health care law has and will potentially affect it.
“Since its enactment with strong bipartisan support in 1997, CHIP has played an important role in providing insurance coverage and access to health care for tens of millions of low- and moderate income children with incomes just above Medicaid eligibility levels," testified Dr. Anne Schwartz, Executive Director of Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission. “Lessons learned from CHIP should continue to inform public policy even as changes in coverage options dictate a reexamination of its role and purpose."
Evelyne Baumrucker, Health Care Financing Analyst with the Congressional Research Service, explained that, “CHIP is a means-tested program that provides health coverage to targeted low-income children and pregnant women in families that have annual income above Medicaid eligibility levels but have no health insurance. CHIP is jointly financed by the federal government and states, and is administered by the states."
Carolyn Yocom, Director of Health Care at GAO, spoke to the access to care that children on CHIP enjoy. “GAO’s prior work found that CHIP enrollees generally reported having access to health care at rates comparable to children with private insurance, with some exceptions."
In response to a bipartisan request from committee leaders, the committee recently received letters from 39 governors that expressed support for the CHIP program along with a number of suggestions to improve it, including simplifying enrollment, increasing state flexibility, and incentive payments to states.
