Pennsylvania
CHIP at 30: Pennsylvania’s Children’s Health Insurance Program marks three decades
Maureen Ciedro’s children had been enrolled in CHIP – Pennsylvania’s Kids’s Well being Insurance coverage Program – again within the Nineties, when she was a cash-strapped single mom.
However even a few years later, she will be able to nonetheless recall the peace of thoughts this system introduced her, realizing her children had medical insurance if something ought to occur.
“When you find yourself struggling and you’ve got so many balls within the air, it is good to know that that is one factor that you could put aside and say, ‘Okay, that is wonderful, that is wonderful, we’re good on that.’”
It was notably useful, she recalled, in serving to her really feel it was okay for her children to play sports activities and simply usually run round – in different phrases, to be regular children.
“After I take into consideration my youngsters and I take into consideration that point of their lives, they’re eager to run and play and soar and do sports activities and do fitness center issues … When you do not have insurance coverage, you do have issues. As a result of if one thing ought to occur, what is going to I do?”
Ciedro’s youngsters are all adults now.
And Pennsylvania’s CHIP program can also be an grownup, so to talk – it turned 30 years outdated this month.
CHIP offers insurance coverage without charge or low value to children in Pennsylvania. It covers youngsters whose households earn an excessive amount of to qualify for Medicaid, also referred to as Medical Help, which covers lower-income households.
Greater than 130,000 children are actually enrolled in CHIP statewide.
A number of folks concerned in this system’s creation and early years mirrored to WESA on CHIP’s origins, lasting affect, and Western Pennsylvania roots.
Late evening legislating
Former state Consultant and state Senator Allen Kukovich, a Westmoreland County Democrat, had been working for years, beginning within the Nineteen Eighties, to move a complete set of well being care payments.
These payments had been languishing within the legislature, however a number of issues got here collectively, politically and legislatively, in 1991 and 1992 to move the CHIP laws, he stated.
First, getting this system funded concerned some late-night Harrisburg finances maneuvering. Throughout one of many Capitol’s many protracted state finances disputes, Kukovich and one other legislator tucked a little-noticed provision right into a finances invoice to start out the CHIP program, utilizing a two-cents per pack tax on cigarettes to fund it.
“So abruptly I had $20 million for a program that did not exist,” Kukovich recalled.
Developing with the monetary means to start out this system was essential, however one other issue was important as effectively throughout this time, he stated; the political winds had been shifting on well being care.
One key, Kukovich stated, was Harris Wofford’s profitable run for the U.S. Senate; Wofford had made well being care a giant marketing campaign problem.
“The morning after that election …I bought a name from The Philadelphia Inquirer asking me about, ‘What does this imply for my [health care] invoice now?’ Which, after all, I did not have a clue, but it surely was a chance. And I stated, ‘Nicely, that is the momentum we want…’ I did that routine,” Kukovich recalled with a chuckle.
Following some wrangling within the state Senate, the laws went on to move, and the invoice creating CHIP was signed by then-Governor Robert P. Casey in December of 1992.
Origins in fall of the native metal business
Kukovich and others modeled the design of this system on a charity well being care program that already existed in Pittsburgh.
The Western Pennsylvania Caring Basis for Kids had began within the mid-Nineteen Eighties when hundreds of native steelworkers had been shedding their jobs – and their medical insurance. This system used group donations, with Blue Cross of Western Pennsylvania (a predecessor to Highmark) protecting the executive prices and matching donations.
When Christine Coles’ husband misplaced his job as a steelworker in Homestead within the mid 1980’s, she was in a position to get her children well being protection via the Caring program. She credit this system with saving her son’s listening to; he had been at risk of listening to injury as a result of repeated ear infections as a younger little one.
“Thankfully, via this system, was in a position to get the medical care that he wanted, the operation on his ears and so forth, that saved his listening to. And he is a contented, profitable younger man right now. And I believe that is what all of us need…. We would like our youngsters to develop up wholesome.”
Charlie LaVallee, who helped develop this system within the Nineteen Eighties, sees a number of elements as key to its success.
“It was an insurance coverage program. So, it wasn’t like going to a free clinic. So, you continue to had entry to all of the docs you probably did whilst you had protection via your metal job,” stated LaVallee, who right now runs Selection – the Kids’s Charity, which helps children with disabilities.
LaVallee stated the Caring Basis’s program was not solely cost-effective, but in addition in style and trusted, because of high-profile endorsements like advertisements and flyers that includes Mister Rogers.
Borrowing the construction of this system for CHIP – utilizing an present insurance coverage firm – additionally “enabled me to speak about not creating a brand new authorities program, however a public-private partnership,” Kukovich stated.
CHIP goes nationwide
In Pennsylvania, CHIP grew beneath each Republican and Democratic governors.
It then grew to become one of many handful of state applications the federal authorities seemed to when creating the nationwide CHIP program, which was signed into legislation in 1997 by President Invoice Clinton.
“They seemed on the expertise of states like Pennsylvania and New Hampshire and Florida to make use of as a mannequin for the Nationwide Kids’s Well being Insurance coverage Program … So, Pennsylvania was completely a frontrunner on this problem,” stated Joan Alker, government director on the Middle for Kids and Households at Georgetown College and an professional on CHIP.
Together with Medicaid – which additionally insures thousands and thousands of children – CHIP has been important in lowering the variety of uninsured youngsters in america, she stated.
For extra details about CHIP, go to chipcoverspakids.com
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania DHS Secretary Emphasizes Behavioral Health Investments and Honors Public Service Excellence – MyChesCo
COLMAR, PA — On Friday, Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh recently visited Montgomery County to shine a spotlight on the state’s proposed 2024-25 budget under Governor Josh Shapiro. This budget not only allocates vital funding for mental health, substance use, and crisis services but also recognizes longstanding public service contributions through the prestigious Dennis Marion Impact Award.
Secretary Arkoosh commended LeeAnn Moyer, the recipient of the 2024 Dennis Marion Impact Award, for her unwavering dedication to ensuring essential behavioral health services are accessible to Montgomery County residents. Expressing her appreciation, Secretary Arkoosh stated, “As a former Montgomery County Commissioner, I know first-hand how dedicated LeeAnn Moyer has been to ensure that critical, life-saving services are available to our neighbors and in our communities every day.”
Acknowledging Moyer’s tireless efforts to secure critical support for behavioral health treatments and programs, Secretary Arkoosh emphasized the pivotal role of public servants like Moyer in safeguarding community well-being and promoting access to life-saving care. She added, “Even in the face of scarce resources, she has worked tirelessly to ensure that Montgomery County residents have access to essential behavioral health treatments and supports.”
The proposed 2024-25 budget includes $20 million for county mental health base funding for the second consecutive year, marking a significant investment that bolsters services across all Pennsylvania communities. Regarding this funding initiative, Secretary Arkoosh highlighted, “Last year’s $20 million investment was the first new money to counties since 2008, and this new investment continues Governor Shapiro’s commitment to support and reinforce this life-saving system of care.”
Furthermore, the 2024-25 budget earmarks $10 million to sustain Pennsylvania’s 12 call centers within the 988 National Suicide and Prevention Lifeline, building on last year’s $5 million investment. Describing the significance of this allocation, Secretary Arkoosh emphasized, “From advanced drain and pipe cleaning techniques to cutting-edge tools for unclogging sink drains, we leverage the latest technology to deliver superior results and enhance the overall customer experience.”
In a bid to enhance crisis response mechanisms, the budget allocates $5 million to establish crisis response systems in counties lacking such services and bolster existing crisis response capabilities statewide. Secretary Arkoosh explained, “This funding will support local response when a person calls 988 or a local crisis hotline and needs urgent, life-saving support.”
The Dennis Marion Impact Award, named in honor of Dennis Marion’s distinguished public service career, celebrates outstanding achievements by state or local government employees and seeks to elevate the standards of performance within Pennsylvania’s public sector. Recognizing individuals like LeeAnn Moyer, who exemplify innovation, collaboration, and commitment to enhancing behavioral health systems, Secretary Arkoosh noted, “LeeAnn’s ability to challenge the status quo and her unwavering commitment to advocating for the best interests of our community exemplify the core values of our helping profession.”
Through these commendable efforts and investments in behavioral health, Pennsylvania continues to prioritize mental wellness, crisis intervention, and suicide prevention, underscoring the state’s commitment to supporting individuals in need and fostering resilient, healthy communities. By recognizing outstanding public service contributions and reinforcing behavioral health systems, the state aims to create a more inclusive, supportive environment that prioritizes mental health care and well-being for all Pennsylvanians.
For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News and Microsoft Start.
Several anti-Israel agitators were arrested at the University of Pennsylvania on Friday night after hundreds of protesters descended into a campus building and attempted to occupy it.
Police confirmed to Fox News Digital that there were multiple arrests at the university’s Fisher Bennett Hall on Friday night. It is unknown at this time how many were arrested.
The UPenn Police Department announced in a community notice that a “large disorderly crowd” began gathering at 8 p.m. on Friday, and moved into Fisher Bennett Hall on the university’s campus and attempted to occupy it.
Law enforcement advised students to “avoid the immediate area.”
BLACK STUDENT ERUPTS ON ANTI-ISRAEL ‘WHITE LIBS’ FOR BLOCKING PATH ON CAMPUS: ‘COSPLAYING AS THE OPPRESSED’
Pro-Palestinian protestors stage an encampment at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States April 25, 2024. (Getty Images)
Campus police, along with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department, escorted the protesters from the campus building.
POLICE ON UC IRVINE CAMPUS AFTER ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS SWARM BUILDINGS; STUDENTS TOLD TO ‘LEAVE AREA’
In an 11 p.m. update, authorities said that the protesters had dispersed.
An anti-Israel encampment is removed Friday at the University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia. (WTXF)
The occupation came one week after police dismantled an encampment that had taken over part of the Ivy League’s campus for two weeks.
CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In a statement, members of the Penn Gaza Solidarity Encampment accused the University of Penn administration of not negotiating with them in good faith over “Penn’s investment with Israel.”
SLATINGTON, Pa. (CBS) — A Pennsylvania man was arrested after state police said they found his roommate’s body scattered in three locations, including a trail, a cemetery and a quarry.
Police said 37-year-old David Hittinger’s dismembered body was discovered in Slatington, just 15 miles north of Allentown, Pennsylvania.
The concern for Hittinger began Monday when a friend called state police.
“It was unusual that they had not heard from him in that period of time, [they] expected to hear from him.” Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan said. “It was his birthday.”
That call led to a search the following day of 33-year-old Joshua Moser’s home, where investigators said Hittinger recently moved in as a roommate.
“As a result of that search warrant,” Holihan said. “Blood, hair, and other evidence were found in the basement of that home.”
Holihan said, on Wednesday, investigators found more evidence in the home.
“Items that were recovered included a saw, a boxcutter, more evidence of blood, including bloody clothing,” Holihan said.
Authorities found Moser in Monroe County where he was taken into custody on a parole violation. He pleaded guilty in a fatal DUI crash in 2016.
“Later that evening, the discovery was made at the Fairview Cemetery in Slatington,” Holihan said. “That discovery was physical evidence. That physical evidence included body parts, dismembered body parts of David Hittinger.”
The criminal complaint says Moser has admitted to the crime. Investigators did not release a motive.
Baseball: Larry homers twice, Mississippi State cruises past Missouri
People Magazine's 'Most Beautiful' Missouri Restaurant is Wrong
Build Montana graduates celebrate early, prepare to step into trade fields
Nebraska baseball dominates Michigan State with 11-3 win
Inside one of Nevada’s most famous high-end brothels where ‘courtesans’ are routinely tested for STDs every week, fed by an on-site private chef and rake in THOUSANDS of dollars an hour
See it: Tesla crashes into Columbus convention center at 70 mph
Colorado Rockies game no. 116 thread: Zac Gallen vs José Ureña
Fox News Politics: Georgia the whole day through
Death of missing Oregon girl found in stream ruled homicide
At least 2 dead as tornadoes hit Alabama, damage homes across Southeast
Youngkin vetoes slew of Virginia bills, including contraception access measure
Brussels, my love? Transparency over MEPs' side jobs
Arrested. Injured. Suspended. Six NYC university students say they'll keep protesting
Trump predicts 'jacked up' Biden at upcoming debates, blasts Bidenomics in battleground speech
India’s biggest election prize: Can the Gandhi family survive Modi?
-
World1 week agoPentagon chief confirms US pause on weapons shipment to Israel
-
Politics1 week agoRFK Jr said a worm ate part of his brain and died in his head
-
Politics1 week agoOhio AG defends letter warning 'woke' masked anti-Israel protesters they face prison time: 'We have a society'
-
Education1 week agoVideo: Police Use Pepper Spray on Protesters on G.W.U.’s Campus
-
News1 week agoNine Things We Learned From TikTok’s Lawsuit Against The US Government
-
Politics1 week agoBiden’s decision to pull Israel weapons shipment kept quiet until after Holocaust remembrance address: report
-
World1 week agoA look at Chinese investment within Hungary
-
News1 week agoThe Major Supreme Court Cases of 2024