It has been a long year here in Washington with many threats, twists, and turns for those who rely on publicly funded health coverage for their families – that is 40 percent of all children in the United States. In my role here at the Center for Children and Families, I often speak with reporters or to audiences about this topic. I can cite a lot of research and give you many reasons why having health coverage is important for children but this week I was personally reminded about how important insurance is to the health and well-being of each and every child and family in the U.S.

My 16-year old daughter called from school saying she was having extreme chest pain and having trouble breathing. I raced up to school to get her, and when I arrived she told me she was sure she needed to get to an emergency room as the pain was so bad. Fortunately, we were able to make an appointment with a doctor in a hospital-based practice that afternoon who diagnosed her as having costochondritis — a painful inflammation of the sternum.

I was very thankful that my daughter had health care coverage and was able to get into a doctor, get a diagnosis, a course of treatment and she won’t have to miss much school. In my daughter’s case, a restful break from swim team practice, lots of Advil, and ice packs should do the trick. I realize her health care scare would have been far different if she were uninsured and the experience reminded me about how important health insurance is to a family’s peace of mind. Most parents would agree – seeing your child in pain is very hard but having to worry about whether or not you can make an expensive trip to the doctor or the emergency room makes it even tougher. Parents working in low-wage jobs also have to contend with whether or not they can afford to miss work or even get off work when their children need them.

This Thanksgiving, as we all gather with our families, I have an even deeper appreciation of the peace of mind health coverage provides to the whole family. While I’m thankful that our nation achieved historic success by connecting 95 percent of children with health care coverage, I am also concerned about policies that would roll back that progress. My heart goes out to all of the parents who have had to worry about their children’s health coverage this year due to several threats to Medicaid and the fact that the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) has still not been funded.