There are 8.6 million uninsured children in the United States, and that number is likely to grow during the nation's economic downturn, according to a new report by Families USA.
Prodded by the nation's woes, Congress is likely to consider providing higher federal matching funds to states for the Medicaid program as part of an economic stimulus package, according to Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA.
"As state budgets are becoming increasingly precarious due to the looming recession, this is exactly the time that states need an increase in funding," he said. "This measure would help not only those already uninsured but those who are likely to join the ranks of the uninsured due to the state of the economy."
The national organization for healthcare consumers based its study on Census Bureau data from 2005-2007, which doesn't reflect the worsening economic situation in 2008.
The report, titled "Left Behind: America's Uninsured Children," found most uninsured children come from working families. The vast majority of uninsured children (88.2 percent) come from families where at least one parent works, while more than two-thirds (68.5 percent) live in households where at least one family member works full-time year-round.
The report projects that more than one child in nine is uninsured.
More than half, or 60.4 percent, of the nation's uninsured children come from low-income families with incomes below twice the poverty level, or $35,200 for a family of three in 2008. These families are likely eligible for Medicaid or coverage under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
The five states with the largest number of uninsured children are Texas, California, Florida, New York and Georgia. Together, the uninsured children in these five states account for nearly half of all uninsured children in the country (48.3 percent), the report said.
The five states with the highest rates of uninsured children are Texas, Florida, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada. More than 15 percent of children in each of these states are uninsured, compared to a national median of 9.2 percent.
Last year, Congress was unable to get President Bush to sign a reauthorization of SCHIP, which would have expanded health coverage to approximately 4 million uninsured children.
"The children's health legislation vetoed by the president would have provided much-needed relief to uninsured children across the nation," Pollack said. "The SCHIP program is now scheduled to expire on March 31, 2009. As a result, the reauthorization of SCHIP will be one of the earliest policy issues facing the next Congress and president."
"For the numerous children who count on SCHIP as their health lifeline and for the 8.6 million children who are uninsured, support for continuing and expanding SCHIP is critically important," he said. "It will determine whether children get the preventive care they need so that they can remain healthy, learn in school and become productive citizens."