The Clarion-Ledger

October 23, 2012

By Geoff Pender

Between 2009 and 2011, Mississippi reduced its rate of uninsured children, from more than 10 percent to 8.1 percent, according to a report by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families.

But with more than 60,000 children in the state still uninsured, officials with Georgetown and Mississippi Center for Justice said, the state still has a long way to go. Mississippi ranks 36th in uninsured children rates.

The drop in the rate is being attributed to community organizations and schools increasing outreach efforts to connect more eligible children to Medicaid, CHIP and other programs.

The Center for Justice says covering parents means more children will receive health coverage, and it is pushing for the state to join the Medicaid expansion in the federal Affordable Care Act.

But Gov. Phil Bryant and other state leaders say Mississippi can’t afford the expansion and that the federal funding will come with too many strings, and costs, for the state.