Why CHIP matters for children and what pediatricians are doing to protect it

Feb. 4 marks the five-year anniversary of President Barack Obama’s reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). In conjunction with the anniversary, the Academy is releasing a revised policy statement that analyzes the evolution of the program, identifies its successes and challenges, and provides recommendations to keep it strong.

“As the political discussion of CHIP’s future is likely to become more relevant in the coming months, having a comprehensive statement from the AAP regarding the importance of the program seems timely,” said Andrew D. Racine, M.D., Ph.D., FAAP, lead author of the policy statement titled, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP): Accomplishments, Challenges, and Policy Recommendations, www.pediatrics.org/cgi/doi/10.1542/peds.2013-4059.

Signed into law 16 years ago, CHIP provides health coverage to nearly 8 million children in families with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid but too low to afford private health coverage. Although provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable...