Many Thousands of LA County Children Still Without Health InsuranceMay 3, 2005 |
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| Marking Cover the Uninsured Week, First 5 LA cites recent progress enrolling children in health care plans. Los Angeles – As advocates around the country observe Cover the Uninsured Week, First 5 LA is calling attention to the fact that many thousands of children in Los Angeles County are still without health insurance. The problem is particularly pronounced among the county"s Latino children, nearly 67,000 of which are without health coverage. These numbers correspond to a recent study by the UCLA Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture, which found that 25 percent of Latino children statewide lack health insurance. "Providing access to quality health care is essential if we want to ensure that our children have the best opportunity to succeed in life," said Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina, who also chairs First 5 LA's Board of Commissioners. "Every time a child misses school because she is sick, or can't make the most of her opportunities because of an undiagnosed or untreated illness, that is a tragedy for our entire community." "Lack of health insurance for children is a work force issue. It affects society as a whole when kids don"t have the health coverage they need," said Dr. David Hayes-Bautista, author of the study and Director of the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture. Nearly 350,000 children in the county under age 18 do not have health insurance, including more than 70,000 children age 5 and younger. The tragedy of these numbers is that the vast majority of these children are eligible for state and federal health insurance programs, as well as new programs created by First 5 LA and its partners in the community. The large numbers of L.A. County children going without health insurance persist despite the efforts of First 5 LA and its partners in the community who have enrolled tens of thousands of children in state and federal programs. First 5 LA's Healthy Kids insurance program includes free or low-cost coverage for all children age 0 to 5 that aren"t eligible for other Healthy Families or Medi-Cal. Since the program"s launch in September of 2003, more than 7,500 children have been enrolled in Healthy Kids, and many thousands more in Healthy Families and Medi-Cal. "Perhaps the biggest benefit of health insurance is access to preventive care," said Dr. Daniel Higgins, president of the Los Angeles County Medical Association and an emergency room doctor at St. Francis Hospital. "We see too much suffering in the ER that could have easily been avoided if the child had access to the most basic preventive care." Thanks to a coalition of foundations and other community organizations, the Healthy Kids program was recently expanded to children ages 6 to 18. Unfortunately, due to high demand, children above age 6 will have to go on a waiting list as of next month. Children under age 6 will immediately be enrolled in the plan that fits them best. Parents wishing to enroll their children in Healthy Kids should call First 5 LA Connect at 1-888-FIRST5-LA (1-888-347-7855). First 5 LA was established following a voter-passed initiative in November 1998, and uses tobacco tax revenue to fund education, health, child abuse prevention, child care and other programs intended to promote early childhood development for expectant parents and children through age 5. |
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