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HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced the approval of Arizona's proposal to expand health coverage to more than 25,000 residents without access to regular medical care now. Arizona's plan is the first one approved under the Bush administration's streamlined approach to make it faster and easier for states to expand coverage.

"By expanding access to health coverage to more than 25,000 Arizonans, Arizona's plan demonstrates that more people will benefit when we make it simpler and easier for states to try new approaches," Secretary Thompson said. "By using our new, streamlined application system, we were able to approve Arizona's demonstration project in less than three months. Under the old system, governors often had to wait years to get their expansion ideas approved - needlessly delaying improved health coverage for children and families in their states."

In August, Secretary Thompson launched the Health Insurance Flexibility and Accountability (HIFA) initiative to encourage states to expand access to health care coverage for low-income individuals through Medicaid and State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) demonstrations. The initiative gives governors more tools and flexibility to coordinate state Medicaid and SCHIP programs and offers a simpler application for states that commit to reducing the number of people without health insurance.

Arizona submitted its HIFA application to HHS' Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Sept. 20. The plan will expand access to health coverage both to parents with children enrolled in Medicaid or KidsCare, Arizona's SCHIP program, with family incomes between 100 percent and 200 percent of the federal poverty level (between $17,650 and $35,300 for a family of four) and to childless adults with family incomes up to the federal poverty level ($8,590 for an individual, $11,610 for a couple).

Arizona expects to ultimately enroll nearly 50,000 adults under the HIFA initiative, including more than 25,000 without health coverage now. Under the plan, the state will rely primarily on unspent funds allocated under federal law to support Arizona's SCHIP program to provide the expanded coverage. All Arizona children now eligible for Medicaid and KidsCare will remain eligible.

"While we want states to use the new initiative to expand health coverage to adults who otherwise would not be eligible, we also are telling states that covering children must come first," CMS Administrator Tom Scully said.

As former governors, President Bush and Secretary Thompson have made it a priority to make it simpler and easier for governors to submit Medicaid and SCHIP waiver requests and to have those requests considered promptly. The HIFA initiative allows states to design benefit packages that best meet the needs of their residents. The initiative also encourages coordination between public and private coverage options for the uninsured.

States wishing to apply under this initiative and seek expedited review of their requests can use CMS' new online application available at cms.hhs.gov/. CMS, formerly the Health Care Financing Administration, is the HHS agency that oversees the joint federal-state Medicaid and SCHIP programs.

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