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 New! Customizable RIte Care Flyer
July 28, 2010 - Rhode Island KIDS COUNT also has a new informational flyer about RIte Care, RIte Care Health Insurance is Available for Children. The flyer is double-sided (English and Spanish) and provides brief descriptions of who is eligible for RIte Care and the role of Family Resource Counselors (FRCs) in helping families to apply. Two versions are available - one that includes contact information for the Rhode Island Health Center Association (for FRCs) and the DHS InfoLine and one that can be customized to include contact information for your organization, along with the DHS Info Line. These flyers also can be ordered using our Order Form.
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 RIte Care Flyer Available in Multiple Languages
July 28, 2010 - Rhode Island KIDS COUNT's RIte Care flyer is now available in 10 languages. Download an order form to request free copies of the flyers in English, Arabic, Chinese Simplified, French, Khmer, Laotian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swahili or Vietnamese.
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 Latest RIte Care Workshop Materials Available Online
May 26, 2010: If you missed the latest RIte Care workshop co-sponsored Rhode Island KIDS COUNT and the Poverty Institute, Health Coverage for Immigrant Children: Recent Changes to RIte Care Eligibility, you can now access materials here, including PowerPoint slides, handouts, and useful resources for families.
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 Lawfully Residing Immigrant Children are Eligible for RIte Care
May 14, 2010: As of April 1, 2010, immigrant children who have been lawfully residing for less than five years are eligible to apply for RIte Care. This restoration of RIte Care coverage was approved in the FY10 state budget in June 2009. Please see this bilingual Spanish/English information sheet regarding this important step toward covering more of Rhode Island's children.
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 Health Reform: The First 12 Months
April 27, 2010: Families USA has released a series of publications with details on the latest health reform topics. What Will the New Health Reform Law Do in the First Year? highlights all the people and communities that will be helped within the first year of passing the health reform law. From people with pre-existing conditions to community health centers, millions stand to gain within the first 12 months. Visit our health reform webpage for the latest information and background on health reform.
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 2010 Factbook Data Now Available!
April 12, 2010: The 2010 Rhode Island Kids Count Factbook is now available! The Factbook tracks the progress of 67 indicators, across five areas of child well-being including Family and Community, Economic Well-Being, Health, Safety, and Education. Data are also available for Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns.
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H ealth Reform Enacted
On March 24, 2010, President Obama signed legislation that will improve health care for children and families in Rhode Island and across the country. View Rhode Island KIDS COUNT Executive Director Elizabeth Burke Bryant's statement on health care reform. According to Voices for America's Children, more than 8 million uninsured children will be able to access age-appropriate care because of this legislation, and the reforms will strengthen critical child programs like Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.
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 New Factsheet on Developments of President Obama's Health Reform Proposal
February 25, 2010: The Georgetown Center for Children and Families (CCF) has released a new factsheet detailing the reforms proposed this week by the President. The President's new proposal was released in advance of a bipartisan summit on health reform which is taking place today on Capitol Hill. View the factsheet here.
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Governor's FY2011 Budget Request Snapshot  February 5, 2010: Rhode Island KIDS COUNT has prepared the following document which examines the provisions contained within the Governor's FY2011 Budget Request. Click to Access The FY2011 Budget Request Snapshot: Implications for Health Insurance Coverage for Children and Families. Governor Carcieri's FY2011 Budget Request Snapshot: Implications K-12 Education in Rhode Island.
is also available. Snapshots for other issue areas related to child well-being will be available soon!
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 Medicaid and CHIP's Impact on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Children's Access to Care
December 17, 2009: A new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation provides a current assessment of how disparities in access to care in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) compare with disparities among privately insured and uninsured children. Key findings include racial and ethnic disparities in access to care were no more likely among children enrolled in Medicaid than among privately insured children. Click here to access the report.
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 States Sustain and Expand Coverage for Low-Income Children and Families Despite Recession
December 10, 2009: A new 50-State survey from the Kaiser Foundation illustrates the key role CHIP reauthorization and the Federal Stimulus Law (ARRA) have played in safeguarding health insurance coverage. Despite the recession, the survey found that most states hae managed to safeguard and in some cases (including Rhode Island), expand coverage for children and parents. Currently, 47 states cover children in families with an annual income at or higher than 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Click here for more information about the survey.
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 Progress Enrolling Children in Medicaid/CHIP
December 8, 2009: This issue brief examines potential for enrolling more children under public health insurance programs such as Medicaid and CHIP. This brief examines the characteristics of children who remain uninsured and the prospect for enrolling them in public coverage. To close coverage gaps, states may need to undertake targeted outreach efforts aimed at teenagers, Hispanics, and other groups of children whith lower than average participation rates; provide additional support for community-based application assistance; broaden their outreach strategies to include parents; and address existing barriers in their Medicaid and CHIP application and retention strategies. Access the brief Progress Enrolling Children in Medicaid and CHIP from the Urban Institute here.
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 Poll: Voters 2-1 More Concerned about Affordability for Families than Overall Cost of Health Reform Legislation
November 16, 2009: By a 2-1 margin, voters put a higher priority on making coverage more affordable to families, ahead of making sure health reform doesn't cost the country too much, according to new survey results released today by Georgetown University Center for Children and Families and Lake Research Partners. Likely voters say health costs are squeezing their families, forcing them to choose between health care and basic necessities. For more information on the poll, click here.
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 CHIP Program Improves Health Care Outcomes for Low Income Children
November 9, 2009: A new issue brief from the Child Health Insurance Research Initative (CHIRI) titled "What has been learned about expanding Children's Health Insurance?" describes some of the outcomes related to the implementation of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The findings suggest that overall, CHIP improved health care access for enrollees. After enrolling, more children had a regular source of care and used preventive care, and fewer children had unmet health care needs, and families experienced higher satisfaction with care. Read the issue brief here.
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 Celebrating Rhode Island Children's Health
October 19, 2009: Over 100 community leaders gathered today for the ninth annual Celebration of Children's Health, to celebrate the progress the state has made in achieving positive health outcomes for Rhode Island's children. Rhode Island ranks among the top states for high rates of prenatal care, children's health insurance coverage, low rates of child and teen deaths, as well as low rates of teen births. Click to view materials from the event:
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 New Issue Brief Highlights Key Findings on CHIP
A report from CHIRI findings on the State Children's Health Insurance Program, which was implemented in 1997 and reauthorized as the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) in 2009. Findings from the brief include: demographic characteristics, the impact of CHIP on health care access and quality for low-income children, the impact of CHIP design on enrollment, renrollment and access to care, and the insurance pathways of children after CHIP enrollment. Click to access What Has Been Learned about Expanding Children's Health Insurance? Highlights from CHIRI.
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 Health Coverage in Communities of Color
September 22, 2009: This month, the US Census released its latest data on health insurance coverage. The numbers show that in 2008 there were over 46.3 million uninsured Americans,but the numbers are higher proportionally among communities of color. People of color make up 35% of the general population, but over 54% of the uninsured. The numbers show that people of color are more likely to lack coverage, and also declining enrollment in private insurance, and people of color are even less likely to have job-based coverage in particular. View a factsheet on Health Coverage in Communities of Color from FamiliesUSA.
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 RI and 22 Other States Improve Children's Coverage Despite Economic Slump
September 16, 2009: Twenty-three states improved or expanded children's coverage programs this year despite a tough economic climate, according to a report from the Center on Children and Families at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute. The report finds that a majority of states have taken advantage of the passage of CHIPRA and other federal support to strengthen or maintain their efforts to cover all children. Click here to access Weathering the Storm: States Moving Forward on Child and Family Coverage Despite Tough Economic Times.
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 New Data Released on the Number of Unisured Children in RI
September 10, 2009 - According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data, 7.0% of Rhode Island children were uninsured in the three year period from 2006-2008, compared with 6.9% of children in 2005-2007. Rhode Island ranks 14th in the nation for children’s health insurance coverage. Read Rhode Island KIDS COUNT's press release and view the state rankings.
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 Health Care Reform for Children with Public Coverage
June 12, 2009: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has released Health Care Reform for Children with Public Coverage: How Can Policy Makers Maximize Gains and Prevent Harm?. The report features timely analysis on immediate policy issues surrounding children enrolled in Medicaid, CHIP, and other public health insurance programs and health reform.
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 The Last Piece of the Puzzle
May 29, 2009: The Georgetown Center for Children and Families has released a new report, titled The Last Piece of the Puzzle: Providing High-Quality, Affordable Health Coverage to All Children through National Health Reform. The report details several recommendations regarding what children need from national health reform, from building affordable coverage pathways for all of America's children to ensuring children get the care they need. Click here to view the full report along with an executive summary.
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 Without Health Reform
May 22, 2009: A new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation projects as many as 65.7 million Americans could be uninsured within the next ten years without enacted federal reform efforts. The study used a simulation model to illustrate future trends in Health Care Costs and Coverage. Businesses could see their health care costs double, spending on government insurance programs could double, and individuals and families could see steep increases in costs. Click here to view the study.
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 Materials Now Available from Keeping RIte Care Strong Workshop
May 21, 2009: Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, along with The Poverty Institute , cosponsored an informational workshop on RIte Care called Keeping RIte Care Strong: A Workshop featuring the Latest on RIte Care. The workshop featured information on federal opportunities that support RIte Care, such as CHIP and ARRA, as well as updates on the implementation of Rhode Island's Global Medicaid Waiver. In case you missed it, you can access ALL materials from the workshop here.
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Proposed Health Reform Policy Options on Coverage Affecting Children and Families
 May 14, 2009: Health Reform is currently a hot topic in Washington, and the US Senate Finance Committee has released a set of health reform coverage options. Georgetown's Center for Children and Families (CCF) has a preliminary outline of relevant parts of the proposal affecting children, families and low-income people. Some notable key provisions are the expansion and simplification of Medicaid for children and families, eligibility expansions within Medicaid, and application of the EPSDT benefit to all children below 275%FPL. View CCF's Preliminary Review here.
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 RIte Care Outreach Posters Available
May 7, 2009: Rhode Island KIDS COUNT has new RIte Care related outreach materials available, designed to help agencies and advocates get the word out to families about applying for RIte Care. These glossy, reversible English/Spanish posters are free and available to the public. Click here to view the flyer and poster, or click here to order the materials.
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 Facts About ICHIA
April 24, 2009- The Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA) provides states with new opportunities to provide affordable health coverage to many immigrant children and pregnant women through Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Parts of the new law were drawn from earlier legislation known as ICHIA (Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act). View a fact sheet from the National Immigration Law Center that highlights key elements of this new law.
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 CMS Issues Overview of Key CHIPRA Provisions
April 21, 2009- On April 17, 2009, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the first in a series of formal technical assistance letters to states to assist in implementing the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA). Under CHIPRA, States will be able to strengthen their existing programs, providing coverage to additional low-income, uninsured children and pregnant women. The letter provides a general overview of key provisions of the new law. A series of letters issued by CMS over the next few months will provide more detailed guidance on CHIPA provisions.
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 A Closer Look at America's Uninsured Population
April 13, 2009- Families USA has released a new report, Americans at Risk: One in Three Uninsured, which was designed to provide a comprehensive picture of how many Americans are directly affected by lack of health coverage in 2007-2008. The report contains national data, as well as a detailed break down of each state. In Rhode Island, the report found that 27.8% of Rhode Islanders under the age of 65 were uninsured for at least part of the year in 2007-2008. View the Rhode Island report, or the full overview of the report.
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 Budget Proposal Analysis from Rhode Island KIDS COUNT
April 7, 2009: Governor Carcieri has released his FY2010 Budget Proposal, which contains implications for children and family health insurance coverage. View the FY 2010 Budget Proposal: Implications for Health Insurance Coverage for Children and Families in Rhode Island.
For more information on health related legislation, view our Health and Dental Care Legislative Updates page.
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 Release of 2009 Rhode Island Kids Count Factbook
April 6, 2009 - Rhode Island KIDS COUNT released its annual publication on the well-being of children and families in RI, the 2009 Rhode Island Kids Count Factbook. View a summary of 2009 data indicators related to children's health.
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 Latest Edition of Children's Health Insurance E-News
3/27/09: The latest edition of Rhode Island KIDS COUNT's Children's Health Insurance E-News reports on key legislation realated to children's health coverage being considered during this legislative session in Rhode Island, including the Cover All Kids Health Insurance Bill, proposed bills aimed at reducing premium costs for the RIte Care program, and implications for children's health insurance contained in Governor Carcieri's FY2010 budget proposal. Access the latest issue here, as well as previous Children's Health Insurance E-News publications.
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August 17th Directive Rescinded
February 12, 2009: President Obama has rescinded the August 17th, 2007 directive issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The August 17th directive, issued to state health offices, imposed many new qualifiactions on states, ultimately limiting their ability to expand enrollment of children in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The August 17th directive made it difficult for states to expand elligibility to higher income children. President Obama lifted the authority of the August 17th directive via a presidential memorandum, which can be viewed here. Ultimately, the recision will lead to states being able to enroll more children in CHIP.
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Congress Approves CHIP Reauthorization
January 30,2009: In a major victory for children's health coverage, both the US House and Senate have voted to renew the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). In addition to preserving health coverage for 6.7 million children and new coverage for approximately 4 million more children, the legislation includes more funding for outreach and enrollment, improved premium assistance policies, and bonus payments for states enrolling lowest income children. The protection and expansion of CHIP through September 2013 will allow for added relief for families during this difficult economic time. Estimated allotments for Rhode Island project an increase in federal funding from $13.5 million to $69.5 million. Click here to view summaries of the House and Senate versions of the legislation.
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Enrolling Citizen Children of Non-Citizen Parents
January 23, 2009: Approximately 10,100 uninsured children in Rhode Island are elligible for RIte Care based on their family incomes but are not enrolled, according to the 2008 Rhode Island KIDS COUNT factbook Children's Health Insurance indicator. One part of this population which faces particular barriers to enrollment are low income citizen children whose parents are not citizens. The 2009 issue brief from Kaiser Family Foundation Covering Uninsured Children: Reaching and Enrolling Citizen Children With Non-Citizen Parents examines the unique challenges to enrollment for these particular children.
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Health Insurance Coverage Among Hispanic Children
December 22, 2008- The Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved has released a new study entitled Persistant Disparities in Health Insuance Coverage: Hispanic Children 1995-2006. The report concludes that while the number of uninsured Hispanic children decreased from 1996-2005, Hispanic children still have a higher likelihood of being uninsured relative to non-Hispanic White children.
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New Survey of Parents, Students, and Teachers about College Preparedness
December 8, 2009:
The Deloitte 2009 Educational Survey: Redefining High School as a Launch Pad, uncovers a gap between what low-income parents and students want from from high school and what high school educators see as their main job. Low-income parents and students were asked to rank the main aims of high school, and 42% of parents and 48% of the students ranked college preparation at the top. Only 9% of teachers did the same. The study also found that seven in 10 students reported strong intentions to attend college, but fewer than three in 10 said they felt prepared to handle the coursework. Only six in 10 teachers expressed confidence that they knew what students really need to be prepared for college. View the study results here.
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