Bill Text: DE HB2 | 2009-2010 | 145th General Assembly | Draft

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Bill Title: An Act To Amend Title 11 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Specific Offenses, Animals, And Penalties.

Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2010-05-18 - Signed by Governor [HB2 Detail]

Download: Delaware-2009-HB2-Draft.html

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SPONSOR:	Rep. Schooley & Rep. Keeley & Rep. Kowalko & Rep. George & Sen. Blevins & Sen. Sorenson Reps. Barbieri, Carson, Gilligan, Jaques, Scott, Bolden, Heffernan, Osienski, Ramone, Walker;Sen. Cloutier

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

146th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 2

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DELAWARE HEALTHY CHILDREN PROGRAM.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

WHEREAS, the Delaware Healthy Children Program is a low-cost health insurance program currently for uninsured children under the age of 19 with a family income not in excess of 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, offering all the benefits of most private health insurance plans; and

WHEREAS, the health insurance that is provided under the Delaware Healthy Children Program is critical to the welfare of Delaware's uninsured children as it enables these children to receive acute and chronic illness care as well as preventative care that otherwise would not be available to these children; and

WHEREAS, improved access to health care improves a child's health status over time, which in turn will positively affect many other aspects of a child's life, as well as that of our society; and

WHEREAS, it is estimated that approximately 20,000 children in Delaware are uninsured; and

WHEREAS, while the percentage of children who have health insurance has improved nationally, the percentage of children in Delaware who have health insurance has deteriorate; and

WHEREAS, the percentage of children without health insurance in Delaware has risen from 7.5% in the 2000-02 time period to 10.7% from 2004-06; and

WHEREAS, 55% of these uninsured children are eligible but not enrolled in Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, due in part to confusion regarding eligibility and income requirements; and

WHEREAS, extending health insurance coverage to all children at-risk inDelaware up to income levels of 300% of the Federal Poverty Level - will significantly reduce the number of children who receive no or little health care, and will "capture" currently eligible but not enrolled children; and

WHEREAS, such health insurance will provide health care that is essential for many of these children to function from day-to-day; and

WHEREAS, children who have health insurance are more likely to be immunized and receive regular checkups and treatment for common childhood ailments such as ear infections or asthma, ailments that can be debilitating without proper health care; and

WHEREAS, children without health insurance are more than three times as likely to lack necessary dental care, more than twice as likely to go without needed prescription medications, and more than twice as likely to go without eyeglasses � as a result, health care is often delayed or forgone, resulting in increased risk of developing more severe conditions which, in turn, are dramatically more expensive to treat; and

WHEREAS, measures not taken to care for such children now will result in higher human and financial costs later; and

WHEREAS, children who lack adequate or any health insurance coverage are very likely to be forced, out of desperation, to use hospital emergency room services, which are substantially more costly than routine and preventative care services; and

WHEREAS, the use of emergency room services by uninsured children affects both the outcome of patient care and dramatically increases health costs to the State of Delaware and to the entire health care system, as these children and their families very often lack the finances to pay for these services; and

WHEREAS, the overall cost to the State of Delaware and to the entire health care system for unpaid expenses related to such use of hospital emergency room services is exorbitant; and

WHEREAS, this tendency to delay care and to seek emergency care in hospital-based emergency settings also causes inefficiencies in the health care system; and

WHEREAS, one of the many important results of extending reduced-cost health insurance under the Delaware Healthy Children Program to families with incomes up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level is that the need for these children to make use of hospital emergency services is likely to be drastically reduced, in effect substantially reducing costs related to such "charity" health care services; and

WHEREAS, the overall cost to the State of extending reduced-cost health insurance under the Delaware Healthy Children Program now, rather than in the future, will be substantially less; and

WHEREAS, children who have health insurance have better school attendance as they are more likely to avoid preventable childhood illnesses; and

WHEREAS, studies strongly indicate that a child's physical and intellectual development is greatly benefited and stimulated by good health care � for example, children who receive quality child care before entering kindergarten tend to have better vocabulary scores in the fifth grade than do children who received lower or no quality care; and

WHEREAS, a primary goal of the health care system for the State of Delaware is the safety of its patients and the safety of the public at large, and to provide quality health care services to those most in need � especially the children of our State;

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1:Amend §9909 of Chapter 99, Title 16 of the Delaware Code by deleting the current language in subsection (i) and substituting therein new language to read as follows:

"(i) (1)The Children's Health Insurance Program shall be extended to include reduced-cost health insurance coverage for children of families with personal incomes up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level, as determined pursuant to 42 U.S.C. � 1397jj(c)(5).

(2)The Children's Health Insurance Program shall continue to provide health insurance coverage for children of families with personal incomes at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.

(3)Recipients of health care services under the Children's' Health Insurance Program shall be able to make payment to the State of Delaware for any required premium health insurance charges by any commercially-accepted means, including by cash, check or charge."

SYNOPSIS

This bill extends Delaware's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to include reduced-cost health insurance coverage for children only of families with personal incomes up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level, confirms that the CHIP shall continue to provide health insurance coverage for children of families with personal incomes at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, and permits recipients of health care services under the CHIP to pay for any required premium health insurance charges by any commercially-accepted means, including by cash, check or charge.