Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Many depend on the Children's Health Insurance Program to help pay for their child's medical care. More than 22,000 Idaho children were on CHIP as of October.
But the program is at risk of losing its federal funding, which could put new costs on the state.
Congress failed to reauthorize the program in the fall, halting new funding. Idaho and all other states now are spending the last of their money for CHIP while lawmakers debate how to pay for the program's renewal.
The Idaho Statesman reports the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare is working on a possible contingency plan if Congress fails to act. It will put CHIP kids on Medicaid, which would keep them covered and allow them to keep seeing the same health care providers.
___
Information from: Idaho Statesman, http://www.idahostatesman.com
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
