By Guest Author Kay Johnson, 9/23/21, positiveexperience.org/blog
This week’s blog features a contribution from our friend and colleague, Kay Johnson. She has been involved in policy-making for children for most of her career, and has contributed to important policy changes for children and families. With budget debates ongoing in Washington and around the country, we thought this would be a great time to hear from her about ensuring health equity. Medicaid is, by far, the biggest health insurer for US children: it covers half of births and one quarter of children under three. The majority of US children of color are covered by Medicaid. Unlike the federal Medicare program for seniors, Medicaid is administered by the states, resulting in variations in coverage across the country. Despite these variations, federal Medicaid law provides for a healthcare safety net for children across the country. Her thoughts include a call to action – full implementation of Medicaid preventive services can help reduce the racial disparities in health; last week’s blog provided a discussion of HOPE’s efforts to fight systemic racism and treat all children with dignity.
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