Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has signed new legislation offering children's health coverage on a sliding scale -- a move that has put the state on the map for making children's health insurance affordable for the broadest population.

Medicaid is the largest public health insurance program for children. This new fact sheet from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured summarizes the relationship of Medicaid with state budgets and provides an update about the fiscal situation in the states and how it is affecting Medicaid programs.

Mathematica gives good marks in its report to Congress on the State Children's Health Insurance Programs (SCHIPs) that offer health care coverage to children in families with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level and beyond. In almost all areas examined—outreach, enrollment and access to services—the programs are succeeding. In the 10 states studied, programs were put in place quickly, and overall, families were satisfied with the ease of enrolling children, many of whom remained enrolled for 12 months, depending on the state.

The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured presents the State Medicaid Fact Sheets and the Medicaid Benefits Online Database, two interactive tools featuring the latest key data, information and services provided for each state's Medicaid program. Both tools allow for easy access to the data which can then be printed, saved and emailed.

Some of the proposals to cut Medicaid costs would alter current provisions that exempt children eligible for Medicaid from cost-sharing and premiums. The Georgetown Center for Children and Families argues that imposing higher premiums and co-pays on Medicaid families, and allowing states to deny services for those who can't pay, is a prescription for poorer health for children in low-wage families.

CCF also offers a comparison of Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program benefits. (PDF files.)

The Baylor College of Medicine invites healthcare professionals, social workers, youths, parents, and other interested parties to attend its medical education conference entitled "Chronic Illness: How To Transition from Pediatric-Based to Adult-Based Care."

Another new KCMU issue brief compares various proposals to extend Medicaid coverage to Hurricane Katrina survivors -- including a bill sponsored by Senators Grassley and Baucus, the Administration's Medicaid waiver initiative, and a waiver granted to the state of Texas.

A new report from Mathematica examines the Santa Clara County Healthy Kids Program, an ambitious effort to close gaps in health insurance coverage for children. Researchers identified many significant improvements in medical, dental, and vision care among children who participated in Healthy Kids.

A new Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU) fact sheet examines the early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment services (EPSDT) Medicaid benefit for children, describing how it works and the current policy issues surrounding it.

Overall, Indiana has had a dramatic increase in the number of people in poverty during the past few years. Kids have been particularly hard-hit: poverty rate for children in Indiana jumped sharply from 10.5 percent in 2002 to 18.5 percent in 2004, greater than the national average of 17.8 percent. And the number of families struggling to pay for basic needs like as food, housing and child care is even higher than the poverty rate indicates. The Indiana Coalition on Housing and Homeless Issues and the Indiana Institute for Working Families have issued a new report on jobs, wages, incomes, and poverty in the state—with information that advocates and concerned adults in other states may find useful.