22 Oct, 2008
HI Governor Takes Health Insurance Coverage Away From 2,000 Kids
Posted under: Health | Subscribe by RSS | Subscribe by Email
In 2007, Hawaii enacted the first universal health insurance law for children in the country. State Legislature created the program, Keiki Care, to provide health insurance coverage for all children, regardless of income level.
Children enrolled in Keiki Care received health insurance free of charge, save a $7 copayment for a doctor’s office visit, reported CNN and the Associated Press. But the Governor Linda Lingle axed the program just seven months after it went into effect, citing an overall $900 budget deficit by 2011.
The act by the Governor will result in 2,000 Hawaiian children losing health coverage. It should be added that most of the kids enrolled in Keiki Care had dropped their private insurance coverage for this free care.
An administrator at the state Department of Human Services said, “People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free. I don’t believe that was the intent of the program.” Some residents were not happy with the republican governor’s move.
“We’re very disappointed in the state’s decision, and it came as a complete surprise to us. We believe the program is working, and given Hawaii’s economic uncertainty, we don’t think now is the time to cut all funding for this kind of program,” stated a spokesperson for the Hawaii Medical Service Association. There are some things we are seeing with this program cut.
It’s curious that the governor signed the program into law last year, but failed to recognize a looming budget deficit the coming years. Not only will 2,000 children be dropped from their health insurance plans, it doesn’t seem to make any political sense why the law should be signed only to be killed later. Some lawmakers agreed.
“Children are a lot more vulnerable in terms of needing care. It’s not very good to try to be a leader and then renege on that commitment,” said state Senator Suzanne Chun Oakland. Also, when the governor’s administration cites that many are dropping private coverage for Keiki Care, was it because they wanted to cheat the system or because they were paying too much for their private plan? Governor Lingle will probably have some more explaining to do.