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NY records a significant decline in the number of uninsured children

Oct 14, 2020 5:30 am
Nick Reisman is reporting for State of Politics New York is the only state in the U.S. to record a significant decline in the number of uninsured children over a three-year period prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The news, based on the U.S. Census, has encouraged researchers like Kate Breslin of the Schuyler Center in Albany. Much of this came with help from the Affordable Care Act, she said. "The ACA provides funding for states to expand their Medicaid programs, so a loss of that would likely mean a loss for children and their families," Breslin said. Breslin also attributed the decline to state-level support for enrolling immigrant children. The report found nationally nearly one in 10 Latino children are uninsured. In New York, that rate was 2.3 percent. "It starts with the messaging from the top from our state leaders who really continue and talk about and create a climate that immigrants are welcome here and you're New Yorkers no matter where you are born," Breslin said. "And it's about how programs are implemented.” Read the full story at nystateofpolitics [dot] com.