Jefferson County Health Department Receives Covering Kids Grant

BIRMINGHAM, Ala – The Jefferson, Blount, and Shelby Local Initiative, a project of the Jefferson County Health Department, has been awarded a $194,720 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to help connect eligible uninsured children to free and low-cost health coverage in those counties, announced Tracy Carter, statewide project director for Covering Kids & Families, based at The University of Alabama.

The grant will be used to find and enroll eligible families, simplify enrollment and renewal processes, and coordinate health care coverage programs. The three programs in Alabama for children under the age of 19 are ALL Kids, SOBRA Medicaid and the Child Caring Program.

“Thousands of Alabama’s uninsured families do not realize they qualify for Medicaid, ALL Kids, or the Caring Program for Children,” said UA’s Carter. “With generous funding and support from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, we are better equipped to identify and enroll eligible children for coverage.”

“Approximately 31,000–more than half the state’s uninsured–reside in these counties. The JBS Local Initiative will serve as a resource for Jefferson and surrounding counties to improve the ability of families to access health care services by increasing enrollment and retention in available free or low-cost health coverage programs,” said Tracie Griffin, local site coordinator for this project.

She also hopes to replicate the collaborative effort of the Jefferson County School System, Children’s Policy Council and ABC 33/40 to identify uninsured children with surveys distributed through the school system.

The grant is part of Covering Kids & Families, a four-year, $55 million, national initiative of RWJF that offers grants to statewide and local coalitions throughout the country to increase the number of eligible children and adults benefiting from federal and state health care coverage programs.

Working through these coalitions, CKF will build on the work and experience of Covering Kids, a three-year initiative of the Foundation that has worked to enroll uninsured children in public health coverage programs. As with Covering Kids, CKF also will work to involve private and volunteer organizations (e.g. churches, businesses, health plans, providers, foundations) in partnership with traditional child advocacy organizations and state officials in these efforts.

Medicaid, ALL Kids, and the Caring Program for Children jointly offer free or low-cost health care coverage for eligible children. In Alabama, a family of four earning up to $36,200 a year or more may qualify for coverage. Eligibility is based on family size and household income. Benefits include doctor visits, immunizations, medications, eyeglasses, and dental care.

“Covering Kids & Families will build on the success of Covering Kids and ensure that even more eligible children get the health care coverage they need and deserve,” said Judith Whang, senior program officer at RWJF. “Our experience has shown that informing working families about these programs and simplifying the enrollment process are critical components in getting eligible children enrolled. Through CKF we plan to keep up our efforts to see that the low-cost and free health care coverage programs offered in all 50 states and the District of Columbia are fully utilized.”

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, based in Princeton, N.J., is the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care. It concentrates its grant making in four goal areas: to assure that all Americans have access to basic health care at reasonable cost; to improve care and support for people with chronic health conditions; to promote healthy communities and lifestyles; and to reduce the personal, social, and economic harm caused by substance abuse — tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs.

For more information regarding Medicaid, ALL Kids, or the Caring Program for Children call 1-888-373-5437. For more information about the Jefferson-Blount-Shelby Local Initiative, call Tracie Griffin at 205/930-1996.