Federal plan would cover Ohio CHIP costs at same level

Ohio would not face any federal financial cutbacks for children’s health insurance during the next two years if Congress approves a bipartisan compromise bill unveiled Monday (Source: “Federal bill would cover most of cost for Ohio children’s health insurance,” Columbus Dispatch, Sept. 18, 2017).

The $9 billion measure, which would re-authorize for five years the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), would allow at least 210,000 low-income children in Ohio to keep their coverage through the end of 2019.

If the Senate and House approve the bill, the federal government would continue to pay 97 percent of Ohio’s costs to maintain the program before declining to 85 percent in 2020 and 74 percent in 2021 and 2022. That means state lawmakers in Columbus will have to find the extra money after 2019 to keep the program at its current level.

Before passage of the ACA in 2010, the federal government provided 74 percent of the costs of Ohio’s children’s insurance program. The ACA boosted that percentage to 97 percent, but the higher federal payments were scheduled to end by next week.