Delivering Health Care to At-Risk Children Must Be Bipartisan Priority Again

, Currently, health insurance for an estimated 26,800 Bexar County children and nine million children across America, as well as services for many disadvantaged mothers, is at risk. This could have been avoided. While the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) began two decades ago as a bipartisan initiative, indifference by Republican leadership has allowed it to expire. History shows that when children are not healthy, their ability to learn weakens, which only further reinforces the cycle of inequality. Congress must act now so that parents no longer have to worry about their child's access to a family physician.

Families across Texas depend on CHIP - the Arriola family is one of many. After being diagnosed with Lupus, Laura had to leave her full-time job. Not too long afterward, the family lost health coverage when her husband lost his job. While working to overcome these setbacks, the family relies upon CHIP to insure their three children, providing them with care and peace of mind.

On Thursday, I heard similar stories from physicians and child health advocates at the Children's Hospital, where we called attention on the immediate need to restore CHIP. Dr. Mark Gilger, the Children's Hospital Pediatrician-in-Chief, began our event by explaining how CHIP is absolutely essential to the CHRISTUS Health model of providing preventative services to all children and to moms-to-be.

Dr. Rudy Morales Urby shared the story of Juan and Maria, whose parents make a bit too much to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford private coverage. Both of these children with chronic illnesses were finding themselves in the emergency room about once a month, before getting covered through CHIP. Now, when they need care, the children can see a family physician, instead of the inside of an ambulance.

We also heard from Fred Hines, CEO of the Clarity Child Guidance Center, who explained how CHIP allows children access to timely treatment for mental illness, including the trauma caused by disasters like Hurricane Harvey. Dr. Dianna Burns spoke eloquently about a 16-year-old with special needs on CHIP, whose father is a disabled veteran and whose mother is a home health care provider. This family sometimes struggles to even afford the $5 copay for covered services.

Apathy is unconscionable. State CHIP coffers are already running on empty, and they cannot be filled with empty promises that eventually, something will be done. The head of Texas CHIP expects to run out of money in about three months or less and emergency funds have already been rushed to three states.

Had the State not created barriers to insuring more children legally eligible for coverage, Texas CHIP would likely be bankrupt already. Texas ranks near the bottom on covering our kids - of almost 700,000 uninsured Texan children in 2015, more than 300,000 were eligible for Medicaid or CHIP. We must both protect CHIP and make it more accessible, yet by building procedural barriers to enrollment, Texas has done next to nothing to encourage CHIP enrollment. Struggling parents cannot access help that they do not know exists.

After postponing consideration of any legislation until CHIP expired on Sept. 30, Congressional Republicans are attempting to pay for CHIP renewal by hiking Medicare premiums and by raiding the Affordable Care Act, which they continue to sabotage until they can completely repeal it. Medicare premiums should be used solely to strengthen Medicare, not be diverted to another purpose, however worthy. CHIP began as a bipartisan priority, and we need to find that collaborative spirit again.

Every day that Republicans fail to act on CHIP puts more children at risk. We should not permit millions of children to be kicked off coverage specially designed for their needs. As President Trump wrecks chaos in the broader insurance marketplace, it is increasingly critical to maintain stable coverage for children.

I hope others will join in being a voice for the littlest voices.