Governor Schwarzenegger Signs FY 2009-10 Budget Cutting Billions and Harming Millions of Children

CHILDREN’S HEALTH- Budget Cuts Shreds the Health Care Safety Net for Children; Close to One Million Children Could Loss or Be Denied Health Coverage

As a result of this deficit, the Healthy Families program will need to dis-enroll 585,000 children currently receiving health coverage through Healthy Families, and will bar an additional 335,000 eligible children from enrolling. Altogether, 920,000 children eligible for Healthy Families could lose or be denied coverage. The Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB), advocates, health plans and other concerned parties are working on sources of funding to ameliorate the cuts, which could possibly include funds from First 5. However, it is highly unlikely that the entire cut can be restored in this way.  

The Governor also used his line item veto authority to cut $60.6 million from county Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid program) administrations, meaning that the already over-burdened county Medi-Cal offices will have an even more difficult time processing applications for low-income children and their families. The budget also assumes $323 million in General Fund savings in Medi-Cal, but it has not yet been determined how these savings will be achieved.

A number of other critical health programs were completely eliminated through FY 2009-10 budget agreeement: 

·        The budget agreement cut $35 million from the AIDS Drug Assistance Program and Office of AIDS programs. The Governor then cut the remaining $52.1 million with his line item veto authority, completely eliminating the program;

·        The budget agreement cut $900,000 from the Black Infant Health Program, and then the Governor used his line item veto authority to cut the remaining $3 million, eliminating the program;

·        The budget agreement cut $1.75 million from the Adolescent Family Life Program, and then the Governor cut the remaining $9 million with this line item veto authority, eliminating the program;

·        The budget agreement eliminated all state funding, $18 million, for local outreach to encourage children’s immunization; and

·        The budget agreement suspended state funding for the Children’s Dental Disease Prevention Program. 

These additional cuts will have a disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable children and youths, and are a distressing example of our policymaker’s unwillingness to invest in cost-effective prevention that improves the lives of children and Californians.