Medicaid, kids, and naughty politicians

Half of the children in the U.S. are eligible for Medicaid. Since April, millions have been removed.

As the holiday season continues and children await Santa Claus and his bag of goodies we should be protecting them from Uncle Sam's unhealthy policies.

The government's guaranteed coverage plan launched during the Covid-19 pandemic expired last spring. The re-enrollment process has been cumbersome and many families have lost coverage because of because of the ongoing online nightmare.

This news goes hand-in-hand with the serious issue of child poverty, which should have no place in one of the richest nations in the world.

Missouri's Republican-dominated state legislatures don't care whether the 52,000 children who lost their Medicaid eligibility in this state were naughty or nice. Many of these same ruthless politicians earlier fought against Medicaid Expansion and other family-friendly laws.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, which researches health policies, nearly 80% of young Medicaid recipients lost coverage because of "procedural reasons." In plain talk, that's bureaucratic nonsense including failure to list a working phone number on a form. The disenrollment numbers in Missouri are higher than the national average. The state's Republican leaders work tirelessly to reach the bottom when it comes to health and well-being indicators.

Medicaid is an important cog in the government's safety net for children and adults with limited resources and significant needs. The program was instituted in 1965 and expanded by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010. It's a life-saving program, especially since it subsidizes or totally underwrites the skyrocketing costs of prescriptions.

The Georgetown Center for Children and Families reported nearly 7 million children could be dropped from Medicaid rolls, throwing families into an abyss of uncertainty. How will medical treatment, medicines, and wellness visits will be paid for? This burden is added to a daily struggle for food, shelter, and transportation.

There are nonprofit groups throughout the state assisting families in renewing their Medicaid benefits. But our government must do more to ensure the safety and viability of its youngest citizens.

It is ridiculous to think you can undercut the needs of children in their vulnerable, formative years and then expect them to grow into productive and healthy adults. It doesn't work that way. There are generations of evidence that proves such.

Concerned citizens have taken matters into their own hands through ballot initiatives or by convincing a few sensitive legislators to sponsor bills which bolster the deteriorating safety net for families.

Signatures are being collected to get The Missourians for Healthy Families and Fair Wages Initiative on the ballot next year. The initiative seeks to raise the minimum wage and increase workers paid sick leave.

Many of our elected officials refuse to acknowledge this crisis or be moved by data regarding our children. If we smacked them across the head with the numerous reports, books, data, and actual children's outcomes, we could be charged with assault.

It is reasonable to expect local, state, and federal governments to enact legislation that provides funding to Medicaid and support the well-being of our nation's children. Child and family advocates strive to get politicians to work on a serious, long-term plan for the well-being of children. It's a true challenge.

Don't expect to hear children's issues raised in next year's presidential debates. In a sea of corruption, divisiveness, racial and ethnic strife, it is difficult for politicians to see babies drowning in poverty and unfulfilled promises.