Mekeal, a recently divorced mother, said her two children – Keyonna, age 10, and Tracy, age 3 - were dropped from the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) in January because her salary exceeds the income eligibility level by $2,000. She applied for private coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) and was approved for her 3-year-old but not for her 10-year-old. She suspects it's because her daughter suffered from irritable bowel syndrome more than three years ago. When she asked why BCBS refused coverage for her older daughter, they told her it was because of "strict underwriting." The family has been trying to get by with no health insurance, but Mekeal says she can't afford the $200 doctor visits for her daughter. She will try again to get private insurance. There are 9.4 million uninsured children in America today -- that's one in eight -- and millions more that are underinsured. And the crisis is getting worse. The Children's Defense Fund is working hard through its Healthy Child Campaign to ensure that all children have access to comprehensive health and mental health coverage. The Children's Defense Fund's Leave No Child Behind® mission is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities. Please give generously to the Children's Defense Fund and help us continue our work on behalf of all the children.
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