Kaiser Alert

Today, Monday, February 2 at 12:15 p.m. ET, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Alliance for Health Reform will co-host a briefing with a panel of experts discussing how Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) provide coverage to low-income children. The two programs together cover more than one in four children in the United States. The discussion comes as Congress is reconsidering SCHIP reauthorization legislation and/or expansion and assistance for Medicaid coverage at a time when rising unemployment threatens the availability of employer-sponsored health coverage for parents and children. Some nine million children remain uninsured today, and this number could well grow as the recession worsens.

Panelists will address questions such as:

How do Medicaid and SCHIP work today to cover children?
How can enrollment simplification and outreach help reach those children who are eligible but not enrolled?
Do state programs differ in eligibility requirements and benefits offered?
How are state budgets holding up under the strain of the economic downturn?
What will be the impact of the recession on coverage of children in Medicaid and SCHIP?

A live webcast of the discussion will be provided by kaisernetwork.org.

WHO: Ed Howard, executive vice president of the Alliance for Health Reform will moderate the discussion. Panelists include:

Diane Rowland, executive vice president, Kaiser Family Foundation and executive director, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured
Ruth Kennedy, deputy director, Louisiana’s Medicaid Program and director, Louisiana LaCHIP
Terri Shaw, deputy director, Children’s Partnership

WHEN: Monday, February 2 at 12:15 p.m. ET.

WHERE: Watch the live webcast on kaisernetwork.org: www.kaisernetwork.org/healthcast/kff/02feb09

The live webcast will begin at 12:15 p.m. ET. An archived webcast and podcast will be available tomorrow.

Please note: If you have never viewed a webcast before, please test your media player in advance of the live webcast.