The Virginian-Pilot

By: Editorial Team

Families of more than 66,000 children in Virginia will receive a letter soon telling them that their insurance coverage could end by late January — less than 10 weeks from now. That’s a scary prospect heading into the holidays and the new year. But the notice is necessary because Congress has not approved funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, known as CHIP, which provides insurance for about 9 million children and more than 350,000 pregnant women across the nation. The program covers low-income children who are not eligible for Medicaid but whose families cannot afford insurance.

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Virginia’s deadline is about two months away. That’s troubling, but not as bad as five other states and the District of Columbia. The Georgetown University Center on Children and Families projects that the programs in those states will run out of money by Dec. 31.

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