Funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program expired Sept. 30, and as Congressional lawmakers have stalled to renew funding, Colorado has become the first state to warn its residents that their children may lose their insurance by Jan. 31, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Unless Congress approves federal funding for CHIP, which is funded jointly by states and the federal government, Colorado's Child Health Plan Plus will run out of funding Jan. 31, and families will be forced to explore private insurance options, reads a letter the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing sent Monday to families enrolled in CHP+.
If renewed funding is not passed by late December, the state plans to inform residents of other insurance programs for which they may be eligible.
CHIP provides insurance coverage to 9 million children nationally, and though the program has traditionally received bipartisan support, House Republicans and Democrats have been unable to agree on a way to fund it. The Senate Finance Committee drafted a CHIP renewal plan, but lawmakers did not specify how the program would be funded.