Funding for the federal Children’s Health Insurance Program is set to expire this weekend, but Arizona won’t feel the effects — at least not immediately.
KidsCare, Arizona’s version of the Children’s Health Insurance Program, is safe until the end of the calendar year. The federal program covers children in families that don’t quite quality for Medicaid.
Arizona only reopened its program last year, but enrollment has already grown to more than 20,000.
Heidi Capriotti is with the state’s Medicaid program, known as AHCCCS, which oversees KidsCare. She says the agency has some extra funds that should keep the program running for the next couple months.
“If we get to the point where that funding is reaching that point of exhaustion and congress hasn’t taken any action, then it will be up to our legislators and our policymakers to decide what to do with the program,” Capriotti said.
The House committee in charge of the CHIP funding is scheduled to meet next week, right after the funding officially expires.
