Governor Gray Davis and First Lady Sharon Davis Help Launch Innovative Program in San Mateo County to Reduce Number of Uninsured Kids in California

Business Wire, June 5, 2003

News Editors/Health/Medical Writers/Education Writers

SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 5, 2003

Fifth School District in California to Receive

Funding for Express Lane Eligibility Program

Bolstered by a commitment from Governor Gray Davis and the state Legislature to implement Express Lane Eligibility (ELE) programs by July 1, 2003, the Redwood City School District in San Mateo County received more than $250,000 from The California Endowment, a private, statewide health foundation, to plan and implement ELE, an innovative program designed to increase children's enrollment in Medi-Cal or Healthy Families programs. Governor Gray Davis, First Lady Sharon Davis, health leaders and school officials today announced the program's launch, engaging fifth-grade students from Fair Oaks Elementary School in a lively discussion about what it means to be healthy.

"It is a travesty that thousands of eligible children lack health care coverage because barriers in our health care system prevent them from enrolling in public health insurance programs," Robert K. Ross, M.D., president and CEO of The California Endowment, told students, teachers and community leaders at Fair Oaks School. "We applaud the Governor, First Lady, and health and education leaders who have demonstrated an enormous commitment to ensuring the implementation of this program to help our children stay healthy and keep learning."

The Express Lane Eligibility program allows parents who sign up their children who are eligible for the free school lunch program the option of allowing their information to be used to expedite their child's enrollment in California's Medi-Cal program. Once the child's eligibility has been determined, he or she is quickly enrolled in the program without having to complete an extensive insurance application. Children who have family incomes that are too high for Medi-Cal are given the opportunity to enroll into California's Healthy Families program. ELE's unique approach targets families at schools, the place where they are likely to be most receptive to receiving information about health insurance benefits for which their children may qualify.

"Studies show healthy children perform better in school," said Ron Crates, superintendent of Redwood City School District. "Unfortunately, many children in California are unable to get a healthy start in life because they lack access to health care coverage. Redwood City School District is committed to making ELE a successful program for the children in our community."

Nearly 1 million children ages 18 and under in California do not have health insurance, according to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. According to the Urban Institute, nearly 700,000 uninsured low-income children in California are already enrolled in the school lunch program. Because the income rules for school lunch and the health programs are similar, many of these children are potentially eligible for Medi-Cal or Healthy Families, making school lunch an excellent vehicle to easily sign up children for health insurance.

The Endowment has invested more than $1.6 million in ELE pilot projects in counties throughout the state: San Diego, Los Angeles, Fresno and now San Mateo. The Alum Rock Union Elementary School District in San Jose is also poised to launch ELE with funding from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and assistance from Consumers Union's Healthy Kids, Healthy Schools project.

"The ELE pilot projects are important building blocks for helping California reach up to 70 percent of its low-income, uninsured children with health insurance coverage. ELE demonstrates how simple health insurance enrollment should be and, once rolled out statewide, will position California as a leader in children's health," said Wendy Lazarus, founder and co-president of The Children's Partnership, a children's advocacy organization instrumental in the implementation of ELE.

"ELE is strongly supported by both the 330,000-member California Teachers Association (CTA) and the California Association of Health Plans (CAHP)," confirmed CTA Secretary-Treasurer-Elect Dean E. Vogel and CAHP President and CEO Steve Tough. "ELE builds upon our Teachers for Healthy Kids program by removing one of the barriers that prevents many low-income families from getting health care coverage for their children -- an onerous and confusing enrollment application process."

The California Endowment, a private, statewide health foundation, was established in 1996 to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians. For more information, visit The Endowment's Web site at www.calendow.org or The Children's Partnership Web site at www.expresslane.info.

For information about the Teachers for Healthy Kids program, visit CTA's Web site at www.cta.org.