Affordable healthcare has been one of the biggest issues America is facing right now, especially with the Trump administration taking over. Despite the issues with Obamacare, which is the healthcare program led by former U.S. president Barack Obama.
The current U.S. President Donal Trump on the other hand, was making headlines not just because of how he is handling the healthcare crisis but how he was criticizing the National Health Services or NHS of the United Kingdom over Twitter, when he thought that people of Britain are protesting against and want the government to get rid of it, turns out that the people that Trump saw protesting were actually hoping to have the NHS have more fund.
This is the kind of healthcare program that most of the Americans want but it doesn’t seem like it would happen anytime soon. One of the biggest controversies right now is the CHIP or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, continue reading to find out more about it.
What You Need To Know About CHIP
As of 2016, there are more than 8.9 million American children who are enrolled with CHIP. The Children’s Health Insurance Program is basically what the Department of Health and Human Services uses to be able to provide funds for States all across America for health insurances of children.
The aim of this program is to be able to ensure children who came from families who cannot fully afford to get private insurances but are earning too much to be able to qualify for Medicaid. It is basically what people refer to as the middle-class insurance.
Back in 2009, former United States President Barack Obama, actually signed the reauthorization of this program wherein it allowed more than 4 million more children, pregnant women, and even immigrants to be covered without having to wait. Then again, in 2017, the Children’s Health Insurance Program expired, resulting in people voicing out their thoughts and feelings about the matter, especially towards the Trump Administration.
One of the most notable people who is fighting for its extension is late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who was speaking as a father whose newborn son just had a heart surgery at that time, and is fighting for the rights of affordable healthcare for children.
US SENATE EXTENDS CHIP UNTIL 2027
Last Wednesday, the Senate managed to release the deal of the fund extension for the Children’s Health Insurance Program for four more years and two years for community health centers. This is despite the stopgap by the Congress not too long ago where they have passed six years of funding for CHIP. This just means that aside for six years, there will be an addition of four more.
Both parties managed to agree on the increase of the federal spending on healthcare programs, this is a surprise to all since for months now, the Democrats and the Republicans have been debating and disagreeing over these matters.
Senator Chuck Schumer who is the Senate Minority Leader even said that they have indeed reached on a two-year budget deal despite not really agreeing in some terms but the fact that both parties have agreed on this deal is something that they should be proud of.
Besides the CHIP extension, the two-year deal is reported to include the $6 billion for the mental health treatment and another $2 billion for the National Institute of Health.
What Would Happen If CHIP Did Not Get Extended And Runs Out Of Money?
Most people got scared when the issue of not extending CHIP was reported last year because both parties in the Senate couldn’t seem to agree on what to do with it. In an interview with the director of Children’s Health Insurance Program in Alabama, Cathy Caldwell on the National Public Radio, she said that if ever the fund for the CHIP runs out, they have no choice but to dis-enroll children from the insurance program, which will then leave them uninsured and most of the families wouldn’t be able to get the services that their children need.
If a child does not have insurance, the guardian must pay everything out of their own pockets. Whether it is a doctor’s visit or an emergency, they will, unfortunately, be expected to pay any services that will be provided for the patient and these services costs hundreds and even thousands of dollars. But the CHIP has been extended for a couple more years which would then allow more children who are enrolled in the program, be able to get any health-related services that they may need