There are nearly 9 million uninsured children in the United States, and studies show that lack of health insurance has a negative impact on children's health. Data from the 2005 National Health Interview Survey shows that children without insurance are far more likely to go without the health care they need, from well-child visits and prescriptions to dental and vision services. The State Children' Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and the Medicaid program are of vital importance to filling the gap in health care coverage among needy children.

SCHIP was created in 1997 to give states the option to extend health care coverage to low-income children who do not qualify for Medicaid because their family income is too high. Approximately four million children are currently enrolled in SCHIP. Since the program was enacted, the number of uninsured children has fallen by 2.7 million, despite a growth in child poverty and the decline in the number of children whose families get health care through employment.

Children are among the most vulnerable members of our society, and their well-being through access to health care should be our first priority. As Pope John Paul II said in Familiaris Consortio, "In the Christian view, our treatment of children becomes a measure of our fidelity to the Lord himself." The mission of the Catholic health ministry, in accordance with the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, also calls us to be distinguished through "service to and advocacy for those people whose social condition puts them at the margins of our society and makes them particularly vulnerable to discrimination." Public health programs play an important role in ensuring that low-income children have access to health care coverage, and by supporting them the ministry helps to fulfill our commitment to accessible and affordable health care for all.

For more information, see the related documents under SCHIP Communications and the policy brief Expanding Health Coverage for Children and SCHIP Reauthorization.