December 3, 2012 -- According to the 2012 Progress Report: The Status of Children in Oregon, released today by the nonpartisan group Children First for Oregon, the state continues to make strides in children’s access to health services, despite a steady increase in child poverty.
Although more Oregon children slipped into poverty, Children First reports a decrease in the rate of uninsured children. In fact, during the height of the economic downturn, Oregon tied Texas for the largest decline in uninsured children in the country. The new report, based on the latest census data, now shows nearly 93% of Oregon children with health insurance coverage.
The Progress Report also shows a remarkable 11.7% decrease in the number of “pended” health insurance applications, or applications getting stuck in the system without ever being processed. Because pended applications can indicate barriers to enrollment, this sizeable decline suggests that the State is effectively addressing the access issues that prevent eligible families from gaining health coverage.
Children First attributes this staggering improvement to new policies implemented last year like “Express-Lane eligibility,” reduced documentation requirements, and applications written in plain English, which have slashed enrollment obstacles for families and simplified a cumbersome application process.
“These numbers are truly a testament to the success of Oregon Healthy Kids in providing health care coverage for Oregon’s most vulnerable children,” says Robin Christian, Executive Director of Children First. “Improvements like these, even during our toughest economic times, confirm that our investments in outreach and in removing barriers to children’s coverage are paying off for kids and families.”
Children First is encouraged by these gains. But as Healthy Kids funding comes up for reauthorization in the coming legislative session, the State will have to decide whether to renew its commitment to reaching the 60,000 children who remain uninsured. With money for critical outreach at stake, Children First fears that we risk reversing our progress in children’s health.
“Our ability to guarantee every Oregon child access to health care depends on our ability to enroll hard-to-reach families and to ensure that applications don’t get lost in the system because of red tape, missing paperwork, or language barriers,” says Christian. “So we are urging the State to protect and preserve all parts of the Healthy Kids program so that we can continue this momentum.”
Beyond the achievements in children’s health, the report shows that Oregon children continued to experience dire circumstances last year. Childhood poverty increased, while the problems of hunger and food insecurity showed only meager gains. According to Children First, the persistence of these issues reveals serious holes in the safety net for Oregon kids.
“When families are under significant financial stress, it becomes even more critical to have strong programs that ensure children’s health and safety,” says Christian. “While we are proud of Oregon’s success in children’s health care coverage, there is still more work to be done to nurture families blindsided by the economic downturn.”
Founded in 1991, Children First is Oregon’s most respected nonprofit, nonpartisan child advocacy organization committed to improving the lives of Oregon's vulnerable children and families. Our mission is to make long-term, systemic change by advocating for policies and programs that keep children healthy and safe, and strengthen families. www.cffo.org
