Sen. Bob Casey calls for Medicaid coverage for all children at stop in Lebanon

Growing up in a Philadelphia neighborhood without health insurance, Meghann Luczkoski said the idea of a hospital bill was terrifying.

"So when I got married in my 20s, and we talked about having a family, it was very important for me to wait until we were stable enough and settled enough to provide access to the things for our children that I didn't have growing up," she said, adding that she and her husband got jobs with great employer health insurance.

But when Luczkowski's twin boys were born, she found out that one of them was born with a spontaneous genetic mutation. He needed breathing and feeding tubes, a ventilator, tons of medication and "around-the-clock medical care."

In that first year of her son's life, Luczkowski learned that her employer health insurance would not be enough to cover her son's medical costs.

"We also learned that we are really fortunate enough to live in Pennsylvania, where children with disabilities are eligible for Medicaid regardless of parental income," she said. "Medicaid saved Miles' life."

On Monday, Democrat U.S. Sen. Bob Casey was at WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital to promote Senate Bill 2816, also known as the "Medicaid for Every Child Act." The bill would make all children enrolled in Medicaid at birth, regardless of family income, and would be covered up to their 19 birthday without the need to re-enroll annually.

"There is no reason why, as soon as a child is born in America, they can't be enrolled in a health insurance program," he said. "The best way to do that is Medicaid."

Children are eligible for Medicaid if the household income is at or below 133% of the federal poverty rate. Families who don't qualify for Medicaid can apply for coverage under the Children's Health Insurance Plan, or CHIP.

Despite these options, Casey said that as many as 4%, or 126,000 children in Pennsylvania, remain uninsured because of loopholes in coverage and the high cost of health care.

"That's an abomination," he said. "There's just no excuse for that."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people could remain enrolled in Medicaid without having to complete re-enrollment paperwork. Since ending the COVID public health emergency, more than 260,000 people, including more than 63,000 people under the age of 21, have been removed from the Medicaid rolls so far, according to the state Department of Human Services website.

Officials said Senate Bill 2816 would guarantee coverage for over 2.6 million children in Pennsylvania if it were to become law.

"This is a solvable problem; we know that," Casey said. "It's just a question of whether we have the will to do it, to really provide the full measure of freedom for our children and to give them the freedom to be healthy."

Under Casey's proposed bill, parents could opt their child out of Medicaid if they have another form of coverage, either through CHIP or private insurance.

The proposal calls for the federal government to to pay states back for 100% of the cost for the coverage of children. Casey on Monday said he didn't know what the cost estimate would be for the program.

"We don't have a specific number, but this is not something we should deficit spend for," he said. "We should offset it with changes in the tax code."

Across Lebanon County, 27% of households have at least one person employed, yet struggle to afford basic necessities, including housing, utilities, food, child care and health care, according to the Asset Limited Income Constrained, Employed, or ALICE, report. ALICE records household incomes that exceed the federal poverty level but are not high enough to pay for basic needs.

Combined with the number of residents under the federal poverty line, officials have said two in every five households in Lebanon County could be facing financial hardships.

Senate Bill 2816, and its proposal to have all children qualify for Medicaid, would provide much-needed help for struggling parents, according to Dr. Chris Russo Director of Pediatrics and Women and Children Services for WellSpan Health,

"The health and well-being of children strongly influences their health as adults, and pediatrics is all about the prevention of illness, the early recognition of disease, and fostering lifelong good habits," he said.

Casey said there's no reason why lawmakers can't take one major health care problem off the table, and that problem is "insuring every single American child."

"If we want the best military in the world, we have got to make sure every child is covered," Casey said. "If we want the greatest GDP and the most productive workers in the world, we got to make sure children are covered. If we want to be the nation we claim to be, we have to make this investment."

For more information about CHIP and Medicaid, residents can visit the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services website at dhs.pa.gov.

Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on X at @DAMattToth.

CYS costs rise: Rising provider costs, lack of foster homes cause increased Lebanon County CYS expenses

The ALICE report: Above poverty, but below basic needs: Data shows Lebanon residents struggle to avoid 'financial ruin'

This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Casey calls for Medicaid coverage for all children at stop in Lebanon