Washington – Alabama officials have decided against reducing the rolls of the state's ALL Kids children's health insurance program this year after receiving assurances from Washington that the state won't get stuck with the bill down the road.
Cathy Caldwell, director of ALL Kids, said the feds want the state to continue to enroll all eligible applicants.
ALL Kids and similar programs around the country have been at the center of a debate in Congress over federal funding, which covers most of the costs - 78 percent in Alabama.
The Democratic-controlled Congress twice passed legislation to increase spending and expand the effort. President Bush vetoed the bills, saying they were too expensive and would mark a shift toward government-run health care by cutting into private coverage.
Lawmakers eventually passed a status quo extension to keep the program operating through March 2009. ALL Kids covers children whose families earn up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $41,300 for a family of four.
State Health Officer Don Williamson asked state lawmakers at a budget hearing yesterday to continue supporting the popular program in the face of budget cuts.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)