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HHS LAUNCHES NEW BILINGUAL EFFORT TO EXPAND HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today released a new bilingual booklet to provide information to Spanish-speaking parents whose children may be eligible for health insurance benefits through the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and Medicaid. "This new booklet will help to expand health insurance coverage to eligible children in the Hispanic community by providing information to families about the benefits available to their kids," Secretary Thompson said. "States have made the SCHIP program a dramatic success, and a key element of that is making sure families sign up their eligible children. The booklet expands our Spanish-language outreach efforts to help those children." State agencies and others involved in each state's SCHIP and Medicaid programs can use the booklet to help Spanish-speaking residents and others learn about the availability of free and low-cost health insurance for children in low-income families through their state' SCHIP program. HHS will work with states that want to add information about their programs to the 13-page booklet. In addition, HHS will provide booklets to community health centers and other organizations. The booklet, written in Spanish and English on alternating pages, is called "Protect Your Family's Health … With Confidence." ("Proteja la Salud de Su Familia … con Confianza."), and has four sections: --Protect Your Family's Health…With Confidence explains the importance of health insurance to a child's overall health. --How to Enroll Your Kids in Low-Cost or Free Health Insurance tells readers how to contact their state's SCHIP program (1-877-543-7669) and the benefits of enrolling their children in it. This section also explains that parents' immigration status will not be affected by enrolling their children in SCHIP. --Common Questions You May Have answers questions dealing with the age of eligible children, which members of the family may enroll children in SCHIP, and information family members need to share with SCHIP staff to determine eligibility. --Your Guide to Frequently Used Words for Receiving Benefits explains terms such as SCHIP, Medicaid, public charge and more. SCHIP is a state and federal partnership designed to provide children with health insurance, many of whom come from working families with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid but too low to afford private health insurance. According to state figures, about 4.6 million children received health coverage through SCHIP at some point in fiscal year 2001. SCHIP plans operate in all 50 states, five territories and the District of Columbia. Earlier this month, HHS' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new data showing that children were significantly more likely to have health insurance since Congress created the SCHIP program in 1997. In 2001, 10.8 percent of American children did not have health coverage, down from 13.9 percent in 1997, according to the CDC report. Consumer information about each state's SCHIP program is available in English and Spanish at http://www.insurekidsnow.gov or by calling 1-877-KIDS-NOW (1-877-543-7669). # # # |
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