globalEyeNews
health insurance: in the globalEye

Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Dallas Morning News Series Examines Health Insurance Coverage in Texas
Coverage & Access | Dallas Morning News Series Examines Health Insurance Coverage in Texas
globalEyeNews.health insurance.feature article


[March 8, 2006] While many states over the last few years have been ramping up health insurance programs for children there are a select few that have gone the opposite direction. Admittedly, there are many complex funding issues that confront Medicaid health care programs at the state level, yet, most states have wholeheartedly endeavored to work through them. Also, as indicated in the Dallas Morning News article referenced in the Kaiser Health Policy Report below, failure of health care providers to view these low income producing programs in the spirit of partnership with the community results in disastrously heartbreaking consequences for children in these states. Should health care be all about money? Read on.
[globalEyeNews.tip.health insurance]


Kaisernetwork.org: Daily Health Policy Report


Coverage & Access | Dallas Morning News Series Examines Health Insurance Coverage in Texas


[Jan 23, 2006] The Dallas Morning News is publishing a three-part series examining the absence of health insurance coverage for one in four Texans -- the highest percentage of people without coverage compared with other states. Summaries of the first two articles appear below.

  • Children's dental care: When Texas cut dental benefits from its SCHIP program in 2003, thousands of low-income parents could not find affordable dental care for their children, the Dallas Morning News reports. Although legislation restoring the benefits passed in the spring of 2005, coverage has not been made available because negotiations with a dental provider have been extended. Children are not expected to receive SCHIP dental care benefits until at least April 1. There are an estimated 395,000 children in Dallas County who lack dental coverage. In addition, half of the 2.26 million Texas children who qualify for Medicaid do not receive dental care because not many dentists accept Medicaid beneficiaries because of the high amount of paperwork and low reimbursement rates. For children, cavities that go untreated and dental infections can create chronic low-grade pain and occasional high-grade pain, causing them to be inattentive, less likely to sleep soundly or eat fully, and unable to learn well. If the conditions continue throughout adulthood, heart disease and heart conditions are known to be linked to dental infections (Thomas, Dallas Morning News, 1/15).


    Read More>>>






    • Written at 9:36 AM by globalEyeNews.
    0 comments