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King County
Executive Office
Ron Sims, King County Executive 701 Fifth Ave. Suite 3210 Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: 206-296-4040 Fax: 206-296-0194 TTY Relay: 711
Image: King County Exeutive Ron Sims, News Release

May 22, 2006

Investing in the Health of King County’s Children, Investing in Our Future

Almost 16,000 children in King County had no health insurance in 2004, the latest year precise data are available. Most of these children are from minority populations and reside in South King County.

  • Approximately half, or 8,000 of these children, already qualify for existing public insurance programs funded by Washington State and the federal government like Medicaid, Basic Health Plan or the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). These eligible children do not participate and remain uninsured, however, either because they are unaware of the programs (or unaware that their children are eligible) or because the enrollment and retention processes are too complicated.
  • The other half, or 8,000 of the 16,000 uninsured, do not qualify for existing public insurance programs because they are undocumented children or do not meet the income requirements, or employer-based insurance coverage is too expensive or not an option.
    Consequences of being uninsured

Data show that uninsured children have less access to health care, are less likely to have a regular source of primary care, and use medical and dental care less often compared to children who have insurance. Data also show that access to early preventive health care services can profoundly affect the trajectory of a child's health and well-being and readiness for school. Undiagnosed and untreated conditions that are amenable to control, cure, or prevention can affect children's functioning and opportunities over the course of their lives.

Costs of the uninsured

The real costs of uninsured children far exceed the costs of providing coverage because children without health insurance eventually receive care from emergency rooms or other safety net providers, where the cost of care is often greater than it would have been if these children had received preventive care or early treatment for a health problem. King County through Public Health-Seattle & King County clinics provided 23,000 visits to about 2,700 uninsured children in 2005, at a county cost of $3.7 million. Seattle Children’s Hospital provided $6.8 million or 2.2% of revenue in charity care in 2002 (most current data available). By getting these uninsured children the necessary preventive care and medical services, King County and Seattle hospitals and clinics will save money in the long run.

King County's Child Health Initiative

King County can do something about this health problem. Governor Gregoire has pledged to cover all kids in Washington State by 2010. King County will help Washington State reach its goal by piloting innovative strategies to identify children eligible for existing programs and to get them enrolled without placing an undue burden on the taxpayers of King County. King County can also provide coverage to those children living in working families who are paying sales taxes and property taxes here in King County but earn a little too much to qualify for existing programs. To achieve its goals, King County will look to California's experience and other states' experiences as to what works and does not work. California, for example, has successfully implemented a county-based health insurance program approach in 11 counties since 2001, and the first California counties were in fact motivated by innovative access approaches here in King County, including the Kids Get Care program, a model program that makes sure that children and families get preventive services, not just an insurance card.

King County's approach

In May, King County Executive Ron Sims created the Children's Health and Access Task Force (CHATF), made up of child health experts and state representatives, to advise King County on the creation of an innovative county-based child health insurance program. The task force will make its recommendation to Executive Sims in early summer 2006, on an outreach and access strategy and gap insurance program:

Phase I (Fall 2006): Outreach and Access Strategy. Invest funds to identify low-income children eligible for existing public health insurance program by implementing a targeted access and outreach program. Strategies may include funding perhaps a half dozen outreach staff and community health workers who are trusted communicators to help navigate the enrollment process and to sign up the 8,000 children for the coverage they qualify for, and to connect them to comprehensive preventive services and a health care home - primary care that is accessible, continuous, comprehensive, family centered, coordinated, compassionate, and culturally effective. This investment is projected to connect the majority of children eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP to a health care home and health insurance.

Phase II (January 2007): "Gap" insurance program for children. Create a gap insurance program that would be offered to children in lower-middle class families who are not eligible for existing public or private programs.

Innovation Now

King County is ready to make a small investment in preventive health care which will reap larger economic benefits to the residents of King County in the long run. This small investment will pay for itself and create more opportunities for King County children to lead healthier lives.

Contact

James Apa, Communications Manager, Public Health – Seattle & King County: 206-205-5442.

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  Updated: May 23, 2006