HHS Approves N.Y. Waiver to Expand Medicaid to Children in Families With Incomes Up to 133% FPL
HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson on Sept. 5 approved New York's request for a waiver to extend Medicaid coverage to an estimated 71,000 children. Under the waiver, New York will extend eligibility for Medicaid to children ages 6 to 19 in families with incomes up to 133% of the federal poverty level. In the past, New York limited Medicaid eligibility to families with incomes up to 100% of the federal poverty level -- $17,650 for a family of four. HHS also approved the state's request to enroll the new Medicaid beneficiaries in managed care plans. "This change will allow New York to extend its Medicaid program to reach tens of thousands more children," Thompson said, adding, "This administration is committed to giving states the flexibility they need to extend health coverage to those most in need" (HHS
release, 9/5). However, Richard Kirsch, executive director of Citizen Action, a New York consumer group, said that the waiver "will do little" to help uninsured children. "It's nothing to get excited about. It's government just trying to sound like it's doing something new," Kirsch said, pointing out that the children could have enrolled in CHIP without the Medicaid waiver (Barfield,
Newsday, 9/6). New York's CHIP, Child Health Plus, allows children age 18 or younger in families with incomes up to 192% of the federal poverty level to enroll (
Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 9/6/00). "It won't make a single child eligible who isn't eligible now. It won't make health care affordable to more kids," he said. Newsday reports that the waiver may allow New York to "tap into more federal revenue" through Medicaid (Barfield, Newsday, 9/6). For further information on state health policy in New York, visit State Health Facts Online.
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