An Illinois pediatricians’ group is calling on Congress to reauthorize the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP.
Jenny Pinkwater is executive director of the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She says the CHIP program helps children of the working poor.
“So those families who are working jobs who may not qualify or the jobs may not offer family insurance, but also make too much to qualify for Medicaid; so it’s really a bridge between Medicaid and private insurance.”
She says CHIP helps doctors give kids preventive care and track their development.
"It's really important that children continue to be covered on that insurance to access those physicians."
If Congress doesn’t re-authorize CHIP, the state Department of Healthcare and Family Services says Illinois’ funding could run out within a year, and Illinois would either have to fund the program on its own or end the health coverage for children.
