While focusing on hurricanes, NFL players, and Las Vegas, we may have not realized that the Congress missed the September 30 deadline to reautherize the Childen’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). CHIP provides Federal Funds to States for inexpensive health insurance to children in lower-income families.
According to The Hill, a study of the Kaiser Family Foundation reports that 10 States, including New York, will run out of CHIP funds at the end of the year. It would be appropriate to ask your County Legislators how this will affect your county. Have they contact Rep. Reed to protest the lost of support your residents. Contact your State Senator and Assemblymember and try to get information about how our State will react to the lost of CHIP funds. Hold our representatives accountable!
Also, call Congressman Tom Reed, and ask what did he do to try to convince the Speaker of the House to re-authorize CHIP. There has been nothing on his website or Facebook page about not renewing it. I thought he cared about his constituents.
Rep. Reed’s Office Numbers.
- Washington (202) 225-3161
- Corning (607) 654-7566
- Geneva (315) 759-5229
- Ithaca (607) 222-2027
- Jamestown (716) 708-6369
- Olean (716) 379-8434
Below is the number of children affected in the NY-23rd Counties as of September, 2017.
New NY 23rd 
Thank you for this very important post. I will make those calls today.
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Congress is certain to renew CHIP in some form, but will it be underfunded and wrapped in more red tape?
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With the success of the ACA (Affordable Care Act) passed in 2010 why do we need to continue the CHIP program? It would seem to most that this is nothing more than a duplication of services while presenting an increase in government cost and government bureaucracy.
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Keep in mind that children are not a very powerful constituency. They don’t vote or contribute to political war chests.
The ACA, Medicaid and CHIP are complementary but different. The ACA, while effective in those states that chose to implement it fully, did not solve all the problems in the health care delivery system. This is especially true in the states that refused to implement the ACA, thereby depriving many of their citizens with affordable health care options or Medicaid.
A good discussion of the relationship between the ACA, Medicaid and CHIP can be found at the following website:
https://www.kff.org/health-reform/issue-brief/childrens-health-coverage-medicaid-chip-and-the-aca/
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I called asking for specifics on what Reed has done or plans to do about CHIP funding, and was told that “they have until December to reinstate funding.” Then she rattled off a spiel about the Problem Solvers Caucus and their “5-point plan for healthcare.” I asked for the 5 points and she couldn’t provide them. She told me to Google it! I then asked for someone to call me regarding CHIP and specifically what Reed plans to do about it since about 11,000 children in his district depend on it. She said that they do not return phone calls and that they only communicate by mail and email. I asked when I could expect a response and she said that it would take a few weeks! I guess since I do not have press credentials to wave in their faces they don’t care to provide any information.
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Here are links to two articles about the Problem Solvers 5 point plan. Neither mentions insuring children in low-income families, per se.