MEDICAID: Presumptive Eligibility For Kids Proposed

      U.S. Rep Ken Bentsen (D-TX) Wednesday unveiled the Medicaid Child Eligibility Improvement Act of 1998, legislation that would make it "easier to enroll eligible children in Medicaid by allowing schools, child-care centers, child-support agencies and other entities to immediately enroll low-income children in Medicaid." Children enrolled in Medicaid on a presumptive basis will receive coverage "while the state makes a final determination of eligibility," Bentsen said. The bill "builds on a provision of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 that gave states" the option of granting presumptive eligibility to children from low-income families, the Houston Chronicle reports. Nationally, "more than 3 million uninsured children are eligible for Medicaid but are not enrolled." The Chronicle reports that the bill stands to "enroll up to 750,000 Texas children eligible for Medicaid" (4/8).