Enrollment for Santa Clara County’s Children’s Health Initiative Exceeds Projections
More than 5,000 children have enrolled in the Santa Clara County Children's Health Initiative in the two months enrollment has been open, the San Jose Mercury News reports. The number of children enrolled is eight times higher than the figures officials expected to reach after six months of operation (Mangaliman, San Jose Mercury News, 3/11). Designed to notify parents about local, state and federal health insurance programs for children and provide coverage for children not eligible for subsidized health insurance, the initiative "officially" began yesterday, but enrollment figures have already "exceed[ed]" projections of enrolling 500 children per month (Valles, AP/Contra Costa Times, 3/10). The program is the first in the county to offer medical and dental insurance to families earning incomes up to 250% of the federal poverty level. Under the eligibility guidelines, a family of four earning $43,000 a year qualifies for coverage. Santa Clara Family Health Plan, the county's HMO, will administer the program (San Jose Mercury News, 3/11). The program is expected to cost $14 million per year and will receive $3 million annually in county tobacco settlement funds (AP/Contra Costa Times, 3/10).
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