| By :
Wiley Long
Is it possible that tens of thousands of children died in U.S. hospitals from neglect? Johns Hopkins' researchers have published findings that a lack of health insurance may have led to nearly 17,000 deaths among hospitalized children in the U.S. in less than two decades. Their conclusion is based on more than 23 million hospital records between 1988 and 2005, which span 37 states. Other factors being equal, the investigation revealed that uninsured children were 60 percent more likely to die in hospitals than other children. The grim diagnosis was true regardless of a child's medical condition. According to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, many more children could suffer that fate today. In California, the number of children who were uninsured for all or part of the year jumped from 1.1 million in 2007 up to 1.5 million in just two years. California Health Insurance Keeps Children Covered Under Parents' Plan Before the Affordable Care Act, tens of thousands of families were denied coverage for their children every year. Insurers were allowed to refuse to insure children with known health problems. The new law extends healthcare coverage to as many as 72,000 uninsured children, and up to 90,000 children will no longer be denied certain benefits due to pre-existing conditions. With healthcare reform, children may remain protected under their parent's plan up to their 26th birthday. As many as 1.8 million uninsured young adults could gain coverage through this change in the law alone. The number of lives this will save remains to be seen. Health Insurance In California Expands Preventive Care The Johns Hopkins scientists were only able to capture deaths during hospitalization, so the death count for those who were never even hospitalized or died after being discharged remains a mystery. Perhaps the best way to protect children is to focus on preventive care, and that is just what new California health insurance plans are doing. Healthcare reform mandates that preventive care, such as annual exams and vaccinations, be covered with no out-of-pocket charges. Pre-natal and new baby care is also covered as preventive care to keep more babies healthy. California insurance plans now guarantee preventive care for all of your children, regardless of pre-existing conditions. California was the first state to begin work on running a health insurance exchange slated to be ready by 2014. State officials have moved quickly to implement key provisions of healthcare reform, such as the health insurance exchange that can make healthcare available to even more children. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has already funded the exchange with $1 million. Health Insurance Plans In California Now Come With A Guarantee After healthcare reform, your insurance company can no longer cancel your coverage when you or your children get sick by pointing out a simple mistake on your application. Approximately 10,700 people were struck with the news that their paid-up coverage was being dropped every year because they got sick or made an unintentional mistake on their application. With guaranteed coverage, more emphasis on preventing illness and coverage for children's pre-existing problems like asthma, health insurance for California is a better buy than ever regardless of the cost. Now when you buy, you can count on help being there when you need it. That's not just good news for those people who lost their coverage every year when they most needed it. Now that California health insurance has become a reliable way to protect yourself and your children from the unexpected, there's more protection for everyone.
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