Full health coverage for every child

Like thousands of other kids in Washington, Antonio, an active 10-year-old, has spent his summer days outside, playing with friends. He has been running, jumping and climbing at the playground without a care in the world.

Last winter, his parents didn't think they would see this happy picture. Without the health coverage they obtained thanks to the state's Cover All Kids law, Antonio faced permanent damage from a broken collarbone that would have limited his movement and his future.

A little more than a year ago, Washington lawmakers made a remarkable commitment to the health of children in our state. They passed the Cover All Kids law, which laid out a plan to make sure every child in the state has affordable, comprehensive health coverage by 2010.

The law is bearing fruit. Between the law's start date of July 2007 and February of this year, 15,600 children got much-needed health coverage and the assurance of preventive health care such as immunizations. This month, health outreach workers have been coming to family events around the state to enroll still-uninsured children in the newly named Apple Health for Kids program.

The Children's Alliance has spent the past several months talking to parents and children around the state who are flourishing because of the investments our elected leaders made. These parents are able to take their child to a doctor without worrying about how they're going to pay the bill. They can let their adolescents play team sports without worrying that a broken arm will send them deep into debt. Their children can get long-overdue surgeries that they couldn't possibly pay for without health coverage.

Two young girls in Bellingham, Keira and Cali, are finally able to treat their allergies and enlarged adenoids because they got coverage through Apple Health for Kids. For these 5- and 8-year-old sisters, health coverage has meant they no longer miss out on school days and play dates when simple colds turn into nasty sinus infections.

"Our girls now have access to the medical care they need to be healthy," Keira's and Cali's mother told us. "They get sick less often and they feel better. I love watching them run around just like other little kids."

Apple Health for Kids has meant that Mariflor, a shy teenager on the brink of adulthood, will finally get surgery to repair the cleft palate that has marred her smile. Mariflor lives in SeaTac with her aunt and uncle, who adopted her after her parents died. Although both her aunt and uncle work full-time, neither had access to health benefits for their adoptive child, nor could they afford insurance in the private market.

"Without the state insurance, we couldn't get Mariflor the help she needs," Mariflor's grateful aunt said to us. "She'd have to live out her life this way."

Strong action from Gov. Christine Gregoire, in partnership with legislative leaders, has brought much-needed health coverage to 87,500 children. The state's investment in coverage for our children has been well worth it. Washington now has one of the nation's lowest rates of children without insurance.

Far fewer Washington families have to resort to the emergency room to care for health problems that might have been prevented or treated earlier in a doctor's office. Far fewer children are distracted in school because they don't have access to care for a toothache or infection. Children throughout our state are on the road to better health and greater success in school.

For thousands of Washington families, the benefits of the Cover All Kids law have been immeasurable. But the impact of securing coverage for every child in the state affects all of us in ways we can measure.

Every family benefits when every child in the classroom can focus on his or her lessons. Every taxpayer benefits when fewer families are forced to resort to expensive care in the emergency room.

As the cost of health insurance continues to rise, as uninsurance rates go up around the country, we can feel proud of the investment we've made in the health and future of Washington's children.

Candidates for governor and the Legislature are on the road campaigning. Let's make sure our leaders know that our goal remains the same: full coverage for every Washington child by 2010.

We've worked hard as a state to create this success story in health-care reform for our children. We should protect it as strongly as we protect them.