Public-Private Partnership Enrolls Children in Health Plans
About 11,000 Orange County children since July 2005 have enrolled in various health insurance programs through the 100% Campaign -- a private-public partnership that offers no-cost or low-cost health insurance to uninsured children -- the Los Angeles Times reports.
The program -- a joint effort by St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, Kaiser Permanente and the county Children's Health Initiative -- aims to provide health insurance to the estimated 40,000 uninsured children in the county.
The 100% Campaign plans to spend $3 million over three years to identify all uninsured children in the county and enroll them in a no-cost or low-cost insurance plan, as well as provide one year of follow-up care that includes helping families select physicians, set appointments and find transportation.
Eligible children are enrolled in programs like Medi-Cal and Healthy Families. Children who do not qualify for public programs can enroll in a Kaiser health plan that costs at most $17 monthly. The Kaiser plan does not take into account a child's immigration status (Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 5/30).