Introduction
According to Adeyinka et al., (2019), the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is a joint federal-state program aimed at providing health coverage to children in families with a modest income but too high to qualify for the Medicaid program. This program was enacted by congress in 1997 with a boost in 2018 with extended funding. The program rose to the nation’s policy agenda, for it gave providence to health insurance to children in low-income earning families through the support of both federal and private partnerships. Secondly, there has been a remarkable reduction of uninsured children, significantly reducing federal funding. Another reason has been the concern about the health system raising more interest focusing on the children resulting in significant coverage expansions. This paper, therefore, aims to explore the program planning, implementation as well as evaluation. In addition, it will also give an insight into all the policy processes involved in enacting and initializing the program.
History and design of State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)
The program was created in 1997 with an approach and aim to develop a new policy of insuring children from low-income earning families. This proposal dates back to three decades ago when President Carter gave an announcement to see a change and an increase in federal support in insurance for vulnerable children. The first step was to develop budget legislation in 1989 and 1990, which was phased into the program. Amongst the forces that shaped the legislation of SCHIP was the political balance of power. The negotiation was between the democratic president and the Republican-led congress (Pruitt, 2017).
The program planning process
- Analysis of the current status and focusing on the future environment.
The program came in response to the high number of uninsured children in the United States. This came from the enactment of the balanced Budget act of 1997. Therefore, there was a need to rescue children from such families.
- Establishment of goals and objectives.
The main aim, as mentioned earlier, was to ensure there was the providence of health coverage to those children in families categorized under low-income earners but were not eligible for Medicaid. Those eligible for the program were to earn about 200 per cent FPL.
- Identify alternatives.
There was a separate program that the state chose on, like the adoption of Medicaid, to bring about an extension to the SCHIP enrollees. Additionally, other states with different programs were invited to be part of the great program as long as they maintained the agreed standards.
The program implementation was gradual. In record, about eight states rolled out the program in 1997, with the majority enrolling on it in 1998. The body mandated to administer CHIP was the CMS. Research states that the program has made some significant steps in the many years it has been in place. This is what made the federal to re-authorize it in 2019.
Evaluation of the program.
It is worth noting that the SCHIP program is the most significant investment in health care providence for children. Its target was the 11 million uninsured children. Amongst the methods of feedback gathering on the program’s impact is interviewing parents by phone. The response was overwhelmingly encouraging since a good number appreciated that their children have easy access to health care which was not the case before. In the health sector, it was realized that utilization of some health departments reduced tremendously. Some of these departments included the immunization department. Generally, the program has been associated with improved health care providence in America (Pruitt & Pruitt, 2017).
Pruitt & Pruitt, 2017 stated that there are several approaches that a government may take in providing health insurance through the programs like SCHIP. Still, all in all, the federal laws give a clear direction to ensure that the minimum set of benefits is met. Some of the medical services might include a free dental service, doctors’ consultation and immunization services at people’s reach, emergency services, and hospitalization. The minimum requirements stipulated in the program must therefore be met by all the states, with others providing even more coverage. Additionally, the payment and access commission has necessitated the smooth running of the SCHIP.
Conclusion
The SCHIP program has, without any doubt, grown. A remarkable number of those have been enrolled, and the number keeps rising each quarter, with a strategy being laid down to reach those who are eligible but have not yet enrolled. Even though there is tremendous success attached to the program, there is still a need for more improvements with various recommendations. Among these recommendations is the state’s need to ensure that they add parents too into the program if at all they are to reduce the numbers of uninsured children who are eligible for the program. Another recommendation is the reduction of requirements specifically for insurance providers, which will ultimately minimize the waiting periods, easing the requirements for health plans.
References
Adeyinka, A., Rewane, A., & Pierre, L. (2019). Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Pruitt, Z., & Pruitt, R. C. (2017). Children Covered by Medicaid/State Children’s Health Insurance Program More Likely to Use Emergency Departments for Food Allergies. Pediatric Emergency Care, 33(12), e152-e159
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