Beyond sports: Jonesboro's uninsured families face harsh reality during physical season

April often marks sports physical season for school athletic programs, a crucial period that ensures young athletes are healthy and ready to perform. These assessments focus on vital health markers, identifying potential health issues or risks that could compromise performance or safety during sports activities.

From medical history reviews and cardiovascular screenings to musculoskeletal evaluations, these screenings aim to detect underlying conditions or injuries. What these screenings might also reveal this year is that some Jonesboro families have no idea they have been living for months without health insurance.

More than 13,000 of our Jonesboro neighbors were among the 427,000 Arkansans who lost Medicaid through the state's unwinding process which began in April 2023. Nearly 5,000 of those removed from the state's insurance rolls were Jonesboro children.

Our state has been alerting families of potential changes to their insurance status for months, but those notices can often get dismissed as junk mail or arrive after a family has moved. It's not uncommon for loss of coverage to be discovered after a trip to the doctor, when the insurance is needed most.

While a routine physical might not seem that expensive at $150, imagine learning you no longer have coverage when picking up a costly, necessary prescription at the pharmacy, or after an emergency hospital stay. Those bills can pile up quickly, and at a time when medical debt is the No. 1 cause of bankruptcy across the United States, it's important to ensure your children and family are covered.

Ensuring all children, adolescents, young adults and families have access to high-quality, comprehensive health care is crucial for their well-being and the overall health of Jonesboro, Northeast Arkansas and the state as a whole. Your Arkansas Chamber of the American Academy of Pediatrics believes every individual should have affordable health insurance coverage from birth through the age of 26, regardless of income, family composition or other demographic factors.

Instead of learning you or your children are without coverage after a costly doctor, pharmacy or hospital stay, check your coverage status as soon as possible by visiting Access.Arkansas.gov.

If your coverage status has changed, you still have options for affordable healthcare coverage through the state.

Arkansas Medicaid and ARKids First A and B remain the best coverage option for many disenrolled families. Those plans cover children from birth to age 18 in families earning up to just over 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or just over $62,000 for a family of four.

If you instead find yourself looking for coverage on the medical exchange through My Arkansas Insurance, you also have affordable options and income-based plans. Individuals and families with household incomes between 138 percent and 400 percent of the federal poverty level can qualify for tax credits that lower monthly premiums. That means a family of four in Arkansas earning between $39,900 and $120,000 annually are eligible for assistance.

As a pediatrician, I see time and again that when full families have access to health coverage, children are more likely to get the coverage and care that they need. Beyond the financial implications of being without insurance, there are some important reasons to ensure your future and current Hurricane, Raiders and Blazers are insured.

We often take for granted that our children are healthy enough and only need to visit the doctor for a once-a-year wellness check or physical. These regular visits to the pediatrician can assist our children with their overall physical and emotional health while screening for other potential risk factors.

Just as routine oil changes can unveil potential problems with your vehicle before they turn into significant issues, regularly scheduled visits to the pediatrician can identify health issues in the making. Pediatric providers routinely screen for developmental delays, mental health disorders, hypertension, hearing and vision, scoliosis, and hereditary conditions that may put your child at risk for future health problems down the line. In addition to making sure they are up to date with recommended preventative vaccines.

Building a relationship with a pediatrician through regular visits helps you and your child develop the comfort and confidence needed to openly discuss health concerns. We look for long term bonds with our patients, and frequently we get to serve multiple generations of our families. It's very encouraging to be able to talk to a young person and to be able to get down on their level and to be able to listen to them express their concerns. They may range from medical issues, to school performance concerns, to mental health problems and to be able to help them come up with management options so they can be the best possible version of themselves is very rewarding.

Healthy children are more likely to attend school regularly and more likely to reach the cognitive, social and emotional milestones needed to ensure success in the classroom and beyond. Early check ups can help with the identification and treatment of potential developmental concerns like autism and learning challenges like dyslexia or ADHD.

Mental health isn't just a popular topic of conversation these days – it's an increasingly crucial part of overall health, especially for children. According to the Arkansas Department of Health, nearly 1 in 3 children ages 3-17 have reported one or more mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral health problems. These troubling issues include depression, anxiety, addiction and many complex issues that need specialized care once identified.

If you suddenly find you and your family are without health coverage, are unsure if you are covered, or even if you have coverage and just want to make sure it's the best available option, I encourage you to take advantage of the resources the state makes available. Visit Access.Arkansas.Gov to check your status and MyARInsurance.com to see if you qualify for coverage through the state's insurance exchange.

Dr. Jane Sneed, MD, joined The Children's Clinic in Jonesboro in 1993. She graduated from the University of Tennessee in Memphis, and served as chief resident at Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center in Memphis following the completion of her training. She is a Board Certified Pediatrician, is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics and very involved in the Arkansas Chapter of the AAP.