Demonstrating that covering kids is still a very high priority across the nation, twenty-three states earned CHIPRA performance bonuses for improving access to children’s health coverage and successfully enrolling eligible children. The states will split a total of nearly $306 million.

The 23 states include:  Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.   Utah is receiving a performance bonus for the first time; the other states have received bonuses in previous years.

At CCF, we were particularly pleased to see that eight Finishline and Kidswell states earned bonuses.  We want to commend the children’s health care advocates in those states and in all states where progress has been made.  They are truly making a difference in the lives of children by trying to remove barriers to coverage and reaching more eligible but uninsured children.

Congress approved the bonuses as part of the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, one of the first pieces of legislation to be signed into law by President Obama. The bonuses are intended to help states by offsetting the added costs of insuring the lowest income children and encouraging them to adopt sustainable improvements in their children’s health coverage programs.  Such improvements include eliminating face-to-face interview requirements so that applications can be filed online or through the mail, using electronic data-matching to reduce paperwork, and making it easier to renew, thereby minimizing disruptions in coverage.